HOME PAGE AMATEUR NIGHT SKY MAGAZINE ASTRONOMY BLOG ASTRONOMY BLOG INDEX LINK LIBRARY JUST BLOG PHOTOGRAPHY RESOURCES SEARCH ANS ARCHIVE MY HOME OBSERVATORY International Astronomical Union Observatory J82 My Observatory My C14 OTA repainted - from orange to red - on the Paramount ME April 2015 My Meade 12 inch SCT on a CGEM (Classic) Mount My 4 inch Meade Refractor with Sky Watcher Guidesope and ZWO camera on a CGEM (Classic) Mount My Solar setup using a DSLR and Mylar Filter on my ETX90 DSLR attached to ETX90. LiveView image of 2015 partial eclipse on Canon 40D MY RECENT BLOGS ASTRONOMY BLOG INDEX From my Bookshelf - Herschel at the Cape Orion over the rooftop in Spain Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko this morning. Comet 81P/Wild Globular Cluster M79 using iPhone to connect to Siding Spring telescope M42 from Siding Spring this morning. Latest Catalina Image from Friday Comet C\2013 X1 Panstarrs at 3:27 a.m. this morning. Orion's Belt and Nebula tonight Ursa Major rising in the east NGC 2818 with a larger telescope NGC 2818 NGC 2359 - Nebula in Canis Major My NGC 2346 region "Shallow Field" in Monoceros SkyWatcher Star Adventurer Portable Setup Part 6 SkyWatcher Star Adventurer Part 5 SkyWatcher Star Adventurer Portable Setup Part 4 Skywatcher Star Adventurer Portable Setup Part 3 Jupiter through the clouds. My Portable Equipment Part 2 Cloudy Skies at the start of the Year and my Portable Equipment Clear Skies with a message from the Sun.The Winter Triangle and the New Year Star. Clear Skies? Harvest SuperMoon The stars from Lancashire tonight A new telescope for £34.99 AAVSO Alert No. 518 Partial Eclipse Leyland 20th March 2015 The Coma Cluster Reverend Webb and The English Mechanic Visit by Sharples School 8th March 2015 - A bright Moon lights the sky When is that amateur astronomer's space telescope going to be launched? Comet 32P Comas Sola imaged this morning imaged this a.m. from New Mexico re-imaged this p.m. from Siding Spring in Australia C/2013 V2 (Borisov) imaged using T11 from New Mexico 32P/Comas Sola imaged from New Mexico M44 imaged from New Mexico Jewel Box Cluster imaged from Siding Spring NGC 2455 Open Cluster in Puppis What is in the sky tonight. Astronomy Magazines and Clouds NGC 4459 galaxy in Coma Berenices image ruined by satellite! Open Cluster NGC 4349 in the Southern Cross imaged from Siding Spring Messier 37 APASS Update John Herschel letter concerning Planetary Nebulae Comet spotted near Xmas Tree Nebula and Supernova confirmation Christmas Eve - Wednesday 24th December 2014. Clouds and new cataclysmic Variable candidates in Auriga and Gemini The Minor Planet Juno Georgium Sidus in the News 1790 Derby Mercury - Thursday 28 January 1790 Another clear night Back in the UK - The Moon and Sirius The Constellations of Cassiopeia and Auriga Ursa Major and some Messier Galaxies The Hyades and the Pleiades imaged this morning just after midnight. Learning about Astronomy Orion at 6.a.m. today 25th November 2014 Through my Binoculars Where are the Dwarf Planets Where is Mars in the sky? The LMC and the Tarantula. This morning's Moon and happy birthday Edwin Hubble - see today's "Daily" The Moon and Jupiter this morning 19th November 2014 NGC 2477 Cluster Project The Sky this morning - 17th November 2014 Early morning stars More images from the 4 inch refractor A good day yesterday - Philae landed - 3 hours of clear sky observing - worked out how to add APASS data in SkyX to any field of view! Philae Landing Day - Landing time A look at Burnham's Celestial Handbook and Lowell Observatory. The CGEM and the SBIG Camera Setting up my CGEM Mount Calar Alto Observatory from my observing site on 3rd Nov 2014, the Moon that night and sunset views. Camille Flammarion on Amateur Astronomy - Comet ISON 2013 Remote Images of Comet Hergenrother Cloudy Skies in October 2013...but then it cleared to show Comet Hergenrother.! Comet Hill near the North Celestial Pole in 2011 Comet Garradd Animation from 2012 Spectroscopy Part 4 - Balmer Line identification in Vega Spectroscopy Part 3 - Vega Spectrum Calibration Spectroscopy Part 2 - Spectrum of Vega Spectroscopy Part 1 - Spectroscopy with a DSLR and SA100 Grating BL Camelopardalis Light Curve from Sunday's measurements Strong winds in Cabrera Turning out to be quite a day - blazing stars in the Pleiades Cluster now a cluster of Vultures A Monday morning blazing with stars Sunspot Special from Andy Devey Some photos of the telescope site with tonight's Moon ASASSN-14jg at magnitude 14.7 Photometry of ASASSN-14jg More images from supernova ASASSN-14jg(taken 2 hours ago). When will we get an amateur space telescope? Clouds came down last night - cloudy at remote telescope sites. NGC 6405 (M6) - the butterfly cluster in Scorpius Probable Supernova discovered yesterday 30th October 2014 in Ursa Major Probable Supernova in M61 discovered by Itagaki. Bright Potential Supernova in Tucana - Day 2. UPDATED: Potential Supernovae in Tucana discovered this morning.Imaged this afternoon using T31 Siding Spring Five galaxies in Vulpecula and the Crab Nebula Clocks back - more astronomy last night - 430 galaxies -a 1 second M42 image and Variable Stars. Jupiter outshines Sirius this morning. Dwarf Novae request. Supernova 2014dg imaged yesterday in Camelopardalis Last Night's Observations of Pluto - a clear night in Spain Sunday 19th October 2014 Mars meets Comet Siding Spring NGC 6716 Photometry Part 2 A study of the star cluster NGC 6716 Part 1 Tuesday 7th October 2014. Variable stars GCVS V0851, V0854,V085 Day 191 Monday 6th October 2014 M83, PGC 724525 and PGC 48132, NGC 2301 and NGC 5457. Day 190 Sunday 5th October - Problems with Cloud. Day 189 Saturday 4th October 2014 Effects of the lightning strike Day 188 Friday 3rd October Lightning strike. Is my equipment damaged? Day 187 Thursday 2nd October 2014 Cepheid Variable CF Cas Calculation of its apparent Magnitude and Colour Inde Day 186 Wednesday 1st October 2014 Transforming the QX Cas photometry. Day 185 Tuesday 30th September 2014 Photometry of LP Cam in NGC 1502 Day 184 Monday 29th September 2014 QX Cas is suspected of ceasing its variability - I investigate by measuring its current magnitude. Day 183 Sunday 28th September 2014. Using NGC 7790 images to find Transform values for my photometry setup Comet Siding Spring, Photometry references and NGC 7790 images for determining Transforms. Day 181 Friday 26th September 2014 Exoplanet Transit using a remote telescope in New Mexico. Day 180 Thursday 25th September 2014. Rainbows and Lightning. September Images of Comet C\2014 E2 Jacques, Pluto, Neptune and several galaxies. Day 178 Tuesday 23rd September 2014 The Autumnal Equinox,NGC 7790 and 200 galaxies imaged. Messier 35 Open Star Cluster Day 176 Sunday 21st September Tarantula's Neighbour NGC 2044 Day 175 Saturday 20th September 2014. Tarantula's Neighbour NGC 2042 Day 174 Friday 19th September 2014. Tarantula's Neighbour NGC 2093 Day 173 Thursday 18th September 2014 Tarantula's Neighbour NGC 2100 NGC 2070 The Tarantula Nebula from New South Wales. Day 171 Tuesday 16th September 2014 NGC 7080 an Sb galaxy in Vulpecula Messier 42 remote image from Siding Spring. Sunday 14th September 2014 - Manchester Museum of Science and Technology - Liverpool and Manchester Railway opening almost exactly 184 years ago- MP killed by the Rocket en-route from Liverpool to Manchester and Prime Minister Wellington pelted with vegetables in Manchester. Saturday 13th September 2014 Two galaxies in Cygnus in the same image - one a hundred times brighter than the other! NGC 6951 - a galaxy which was accidentally also named NGC 6952 Thursday 11th September 2014 -The 2014 supernova and NGC objects near Caldwell C30 (NGC 7331) - galaxies and double stars Wednesday 10th September 2014 - NGC 7231 - A type SBa galaxy. NGC 7197 - A type Sa galaxy PGC 68482 - A type Sbc galaxy PGC 69016 and the Exclamation Mark in Lacerta Day 169 Saturday 6th September 2014. NGC 7025 and the Toad Stool Day 168 Friday 5th September 2014 Local wildlife and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Day 167 Thursday 4th September 2014 - Clear Skies at 6 a.m. Day 166 Wednesday 3rd September 2014 My first dome and NGC 6928 Day 165 Tuesday 2nd September 2014 Cloud descends - missed seeing Comet Jacques and garden plants in Spain.. Day 164 Monday 1st September 2014 SN Patrol captures 412 galaxies tonight. Day 163 Sunday 31st August 2014 Almeria Goldfinches Day 162 Saturday 30th August 2014 - Remotely imaged Virgo Galaxies 156 x 234 Minutes of Arc Friday 29th August 2014 Minor Planet 1994 YZ Day 160 Thursday 28th August 2014 Eagles over Cabrera, Thekla Lark and Stick Insect + Teresa Flower. Day 159 Wednesday 27th August 2014. 233 galaxies imaged for SN Patrol. NGC 6015 in Draco and NGC 278 in Cassiopeia Day 158 Tuesday 26th August 2014. 152 galaxies imaged for SN Patrol. NGC 6503 and NGC 5985 in Draco Day 157 Monday 25th August 2014 NGC 6781 Planetary Nebulae in Aquila, Camelopardalis, Cygnus and Cassiopeia Day 156 Sunday 24th August 2014 Galaxies PGC 65019 in Capricorn and NGC 6962 in Aquarius Day 154 Friday 22nd August 2014 186 galaxies imaged for SN Patrol. Spectacular galaxy in Pegasus NGC 7814 Thursday August 21st 93 galaxies imaged as part of SN Patrol. Interacting galaxies in Pegasus NGC 7253A and NGC 7253B Wednesday 20th August. 96 galaxies imaged for SN Patrol - A galaxy in Capricorn IC 1324 - and one in Aquarius IC 1331 Day 151 Tuesday 19th August 2014. 149 galaxies imaged for SN Patrol. NGC 7538 from Cabrera and Nerpio Galaxy images - NGC 6911, PGC 64070 and PGC 64454 in Draco,NGC 6951, PGC 64824, PGC 64616 and NGC 6949 in Cepheus, NGC 6916 in Cygnus, PGC 64916, PGC 65049 , PGC 1367534 and NGC 6930 in Delphinus Day 149 Sunday 17th August 2014 Today's weather map - clouds later hiding good seeing. Saturday 16th August - Looking back to 2011 - Supernova SN2011B in NGC 2655 galaxy. The Little Dumbbell Nebula and Caroline Herschel's NGC 381 Cluster Day 147 Friday 15th August 2014 - Clouds - Still looking back to 2009 and Supernova 2009ay Day 146 Thursday 14th August 2014 Clouded out - look back to 2009. Supernova 2009at Day 145 Wednesday 13th August 2014 Mirror Lock Up and Canon 40D Images from earlier in the year Day 143 Tuesday12th August 2014 Wildlife images from Mojacar and El Cabo de Gata Day 142 Monday 11th August 2014 Chart of the 2013 and 2014 Supernovae Day 141 Sunday 10th August 2014 Supernova discoveries so far this year. Day 140 Saturday 9th August Moon is very bright- but behind clouds. The Cicada Story. Day 139 Friday 8th August 2014 The Moon with the iPhone NightCap App and more Rosetta videos. Day 138 Thursday 7th August 2014 Humidity stops observing and Cabo de Gata Images Day 137 Wednesday 6th August Location of 67P as Rosetta arrives. Also autoguiding success with the new camera add on to SkyX with resulting images. Day 136 Tuesday 5th August 2014 No observing - and a Curiosity update. Monday 4th August 2014 53 galaxies at 90 second exposure for SN Patrol. - 20 images in the blog. Day 134 Sunday 3rd August 2014 212 galaxies and some Minor Planets Day 133 Saturday 2nd August 2014 201 galaxies imaged - Closed loop slew to centre objects worked well. Day 132 Friday 1st August 2014 New reduction set and 243 galaxies imaged. Siding Spring images. Day 131 Thursday 31st July 2014 Moon arrives to hide the light of thousands of galaxies. Day 130 Wednesday 30th July 2014 - 340 galaxies imaged and very high humidity. Day 129 Tuesday 29th July 2014 Some galaxies from the Index Catalogue - IC 1344, IC 1345, IC 1347 and IC 1348 201 galaxies imaged and an interesting trio in Cygnus with similar Radial Velocities. Day 127 Sunday 27th July 2014 Supernova found - 19 days too late! Day 126 Saturday 26th July 2014 Perfect Pointing maintained Day 125 Friday 25th July 2014 A long day and night and a long blog - Cabo de Gata and its Birds then out with the stars. Day 124 Thursday July 24th 2014. Birds of Cabo de Gata Wednesday 23rd July 2014 How close will this comet get to Mars in October? Day 122 Tuesday 22nd July 2014 The Moon and Venus in the morning sky Day 121 Monday 21st July 2014 T-Point and SkyX Camera Add On. Day 120 Sunday 20th July 2014 Sony Milky Way DSLR Images Day 119 Saturday 19th July 2014 Setting up the ASI Autoguider in PHD Day 118 Friday 18th July 2014 Dessicant baked for 4 hours. Day 117 Thursday 17th July Galaxies in Virgo and Coma Berenices Day 116 Wednesday 16th July 2014 Misleading SN imposters and ESA image Tuesday 15th July 2014 I rediscover a Dwarf Nova - already discovered in 1998 - that was classified incorrectly as a supernova! Monday July 14th 2014 Just like being on Mars Day 113 Sunday 13th July 2014 T-Point Model, Galaxies in Lyra, M81,M82,M63 and Pluto. Day 112 Saturday 12th July 2014 iPhone Super Moon and more cloud.. Day 111 Friday 11th July 2014 Lots of 11's, IC 2944, Murcia to Manchester via France and more cloud when it got dark! Day 110 Thursday 10th July 2014 R.A. Axis Balancing, Polar Alignment and Lightning Strikes. Day 109 Wednesday 9th July 2014 Declination Axis Balancing Step B. Day 108 Tuesday 8th July 2014 Declination Axis Balancing Step A. Day 107 Monday 7th July 2014 Some naked eye observing.The tail of the Scorpion. Day 106 Sunday 6th July 2014 Telescope re-assembly and balancing. Day 105 Saturday 5th July 2014 The Paramount ME problem. Day 104 Friday 4th July 2014 C14 out of action. Day 103 Thursday 3rd July 2014 Spain and Australia Pluto Images compared. Day 102 Wednesday 2nd July 2014 Solar Flares from Andy Devey, NGC 6188, NGC 6334, Pluto from Siding Spring. Day 101 Tuesday 1st July 2014 CGEM setup with 4 inch refractor and guider. Day 100 Monday 30th June 2014 The New Moon, Pluto, Hercules,Vulpecula and Lyra Galaxies. Day 99 Sunday 29th June 2014 - SN Search Cygnus 42 Day 98 Saturday 28th June 2014 Drift Alignment Day 97 Friday 27th June 2014 - Camera Orientation. Day 96 Thursday 26th June 2014 Day 95 Wednesday 25th June 2014 Day 94 Tuesday 24th June 2014 Day 93 Monday 23rd June 2014 Day 92 Sunday 22nd June International Sun Day Friday 20th June 2014 First images from the C14. Day 89 - Thursday 19th June 2014 Day 82 Thursday 12th June 2014 Day 79 Monday 9th June End of first week in Spain Day 78 Sunday 8th June 2014 Day 77 Saturday 7th June 2014 The Moon on D-Day and my telescopes on 6th June this year. Day 75 June 5th 2014 Early start to see the stars Day 73 June 3rd 2014 - In Cabrera again Day 72 Monday 2nd June 2014. Back in Spain today. Sunday 1st June - The Pleiades using my Sony Alpha DSLR Saturday 31st May 2014 - Looking back to Comet C_2010_S1_Linear Friday 30th May 2014 - 2013cs remotely Imaged from Siding Spring Thursday 29th May 2014 - NGC 2451 300 second exposure Telescope T13 Siding Spring Wednesday 28th May 2014 - SN 2012fg Tuesday 27th May 2014 - Patrick Moore at the Royal Institution in 2009. Monday 26th May 2014 - yet another lesson on how to miss a supernova! M95 in 2012. Sunday 25th May 2014 - Comet Garradd on Sunday Morning 19th Feb 2012 passing galaxy PGC 58581 Saturday 24th May 2014 - Minor Planet Quadea near galaxy PGC 9888. Friday 23rd May 2014 - 4 Galaxy Images from a total of 330. Thursday 22nd May 2014 - 20 Minutes of Comet Garradd Movement Wednesday 21st May 2014 - 57 NGC Objects in Orion imaged in 25 minutes. Tuesday 20th May 2014 - NGC 5272 (M3) from 2013 Monday 19th May 2014 - Comet McNaught Animation from 2010 Sunday 18th May 2014. In 2009 I had no mirror lock on my SCT - now in place! Saturday 17th May 2014 Electric focuser has solved the problems I had way back in 2010. Friday 16th May 2014 Images of Supernova 2012fm Thursday 15th May 2014 - DSLR imaging using the "Wilkinson" interface Wednesday 14th May 2014 - One Second Image of M13 Tuesday 13th May 2014 - An Inspiring Astronomer's House - 19 New King Street in Bath Monday 12th May 2014 Using a single shot colour remote telescope to image the Eta Carina Nebula Sunday 11th May 2014 - Using a New Mexico Telescope to follow up on a reported Optical Transient Saturday 10th May 2014 The visual double star Mizar Friday 9th May 2014 - NGC 6946 using two telescopes. Thursday 8th May 2014 - Looking back to SN 2012B and SN 2012E Wednesday 7th May 2014 - NGC 891 from the Robotic Telescope Tenerife using the "Galaxy" camera Tuesday 6th May 2014 Looking back to Comet S1 ISON Movement in Gemini 21st Jan 2013 Monday 5th May - Minor Planet Interamnia Animation using the MicroObservatory Telescope. Sunday 4th May 2014 Variable Stars in NGC 2516 Saturday 3rd May 2014 Observatory Webcams and the Story of Jodrell Bank by Bernard Lovell Friday 2nd May 2014 - My visit to The Royal Observatory and Prime Meridian at Greenwich Thursday 1st May 2014 - Some interesting star clusters H59-8, NGC 1582, NGC 1798, NGC 1857, NGC 1883, NGC 2099, NGC 1912. Wednesday 30th April 2014 - The Minor Planet - 7 Iris Tuesday 29th April 2014 - Jupiter near Castor and Pollux Monday 28th April 2014 The week ahead from Sky and Telescope Sunday 27th April 2014 - Ring and Crab Nebulae from the Bradford Robotic telescope Saturday April 26th 2014 - SHA Conference at Chetham's Library Friday April 25th 2014 Dunsinck Observatory from Robert Ball's book. Thursday April 24th 2014 - Back in the UK - Black Hole in Cygnus DAY 71 - Wednesday April 23rd - Last day in Spain till June. Day 70 Telescopes disassembled, Chetham's Library and Andy Devey. Day 69 Easter Monday The Constellation of Cancer Day 68 Easter Sunday - The Sky this week and the Sorbas Fire. Day 66 Birds and Butterflies of Sierra Cabrera Day 65 Your chance for astronomy in Almeria Day 64 Bonelli's Eagle Sighting in Sierra Cabrera mountains. Frank Acfield's Jupiter Part 2 from 1 year ago. Frank Acfield's Jupiter from 1 year ago. Day 61 - Sky view from new site Day 56 Count the galaxies in the Coma Cluster Day 55 Hot day and hot under the collar with my old MX916. Day 54 Setting up my old MX916 camera. Day 53 - Bright Jupiter surrounded by invisible comets. Day 52 Cloudy here - Looking back 2 years for night of excellent seeing in Cabrera. Day 51 No observing today - looking back at 2013cs Supernova Day 50 - 2014 Supernovae to date. Day 49 Cloudy day - Telescope planning - Messier 83 Day 48 NGC 4945, dark New South Wales skies. Day 47 Clocks forward 1 hour in Europe - Pallas and Pomona Day 46 Messier Objects M101, M5, M10 and NGC 6811 imaged using T11 in New Mexico Day 45 How much dark time in the summer in Almeria? Day 44 A Lunar Eclipse from 2001 and today's observations of Variable Star V 0552 Auriga Day 43 Skychart download and Messier galaxies M84 and its neighbourhood Day 40 Messier Galaxy Imaging, Asteroids Video Day 39 Mars and Martians - Frank Acfield Lecture on Mars - Identifying stars on any image on the web. March 2014 - Moon, Saturn and Mars in the morning, Siding Spring imaging of NGC 2442, NGC 3324, NGC 3293, IC 2391, NGC 2432, IC 2944 . Day 37 Planet visibility - Current appearance of the Moon and Saturn - Sky and Telescope's Week. Day 36 List of Supernovae Discovered in 2014 Day 35 The Moon Spica and Mars Day 34 - another clear night with the Moon rising later. Day 33 My 1969 visit to Frank Acfield at Forest Hall Observatory in Newcastle. Day 32 Clear night - Trial of 4" Refractor and SBIG ST9XE Combination Day 31 - C14 Telescope with SBIG ST9XE Camera Day 30 Cloudy in Spain, NGC 6416 imaged using T9 with a V Filter in Siding Spring Day 29 Clouds in New Mexico, Sierra Nevada and Spain. The Sky this Week from Sky and Telescope Video. Day 28 Improved Pointing and Tracking, M51 with the Canon 40D and 4 inch refractor. Day 27 Astrophotography Tool, The Moon with the Canon 40D and Step by Step Instructions for All Star Polar Alignment Day 26 Telescope 2 Setup and the Telrad CGEM All Star Alignment video and fitting a polar finderscope. Jupiter, the Moon and SN2014J Day 23 Resetting COM ports in Windows to eliminate Telescope and Camera USB connection problems Day 22 Cassiopeia and Tycho Day 21 Visited Bedar and The Solar Explorer and Imaging through the ETX90 with the Canon 40D Day 20 APT - Astrophotography Tool software setup and images. Day 19 Sierra Cabrera Views, Canon 40D images of the California Nebula and the Rosette Nebula. Day 18 Centaurus A video, Webcam set up. Day 17 Telescope location video and local bird life. Day 16 - Windy day - Cloudy New Mexico - Canon 40D attached to ETX90 - Toucam Pro attached to 4" Refractor. - Day 15 - Sparrows - Centaurus A - Uphill Climb - Telescope Setup - Images of Jupiter and The Pleiades. Day 14- Sunny Day - Calar Alto from the Cabrera Arch - Cloudy Evening. Day 13 A cloudy day and the Cabrera Uphill Challenge! Day 12 The Moon and the Onion, M31 using Deep Sky Stacker and IRIS. Day 11 New Mexico Images, Canon 40D with 76mm lens images of Pleiades, M31, Double Cluster, Mizar and Alcor. Day 10 No observing, imaged the Calar Alto Observatory with Sony Alpha 350 with 300mm lens. Day 9: A clear night, CGEM with Canon 40D and 38mm Lens, Jupiter, IC 2159, NGC 2175, M36,M37,M38, M31, Pleiades and the California Nebula, Orion setting over the house, Sky and Telescope Sky Week Video. Day 8 CGEM Setup Part Two Day 7 CGEM Setup on the Terrace Part One Day 6 telescopes unloaded - Cabrera Tour Variable Star V0645 Day 5 - R Corona Borealis - Identifying Galaxies in Andromeda - ARP 113 and Halton Arp. Day 4 Nova in Sagittarius - Previous Novae Videos Day 3 Galaxies in Gemini imaged in December from Leyland Observatory Day 2 in Cabrera - 2014 Yearbook of Astronomy - Evening Moon from the Terrace - Ursa Major over La Pilica. First day in the Cabrera Mountains- Snapping the moon - Using the TAL1 for visual observations of the Pleiades etc. Arrival in Bilbao and Drive to Cabrera Almeria Channel Crossing - Portsmouth to Roskoff Leyland to Portsmouth 1 Day to go to departure Getting Prepared for the Journey to Spain Strumpshaw Fen Messier 3 Russian ex-cosmonaut professor visits Lancashire Comet /2011 Panstarrs Supernovae in Ursa Major 2012 December 2012 Supernova Patrol Moon and Jupiter Hampstead Observatory Hergenrother 268P/Hergenrother Setting up a new 0.8X Focal Reducer /Flattener Tom Boles discovers his 150th Supernova Latest 20 officially listed SN Discoveries of 2012 Supernova 2012ej discovered by David Grennan (Dublin) in IC 2166 imaged last night using the 32" Mt Lemmon telescope in Arizona. Leighton Moss Leyland Wren and Buzzards The 20 most recent numbered Supernova Discoveries Back in the UK Close call on M95 Supernova Greenfinch Jupiter and Venus at Telescope Site Missed Supernova Wednesday 7th March 2012 View of Calar Alto Observatory from Cabrera Andromeda Nebula using the Bradford Robotic Telescope Images from Cabo de Gata Salt Marsh Crab Nebula using Canon 40D Solar Astronomy at Sierra Cabrera Observatory Horsehead Nebula 358 Galaxies Imaged last night Another M42 Image using Meade 12" SCT M42 Region with 500mm lens M42 Region NGC 2244 Region with 500 mm Lens NGC 2244 Region Tonight's sunset in Cabrera with the Moon, Venus and Jupiter Excellent seeing in Cabrera Comet Garradd Chart M42 Crab Nebula M42 image using DSLR Sierra Cabrera Wildlife - Images from the Telescope Site Objects of Interest February 2012 The Constellation of Gemini The Constellation of Draco Supernova Discoveries in January 2012 Three more clear nights Galaxy Run nets 450 galaxy images More Galaxies Stargazing Live Galaxy Library Supernova 2012A in NGC 3239 Seven Minor Planets and 13 galaxies in 16'X16' NGC 1615 and passing Minor Planet MASTER Optical Transient Sunset and Venus Happy New Year Black Redstart Galaxy Selection Galaxy Imaging 22nd November 2011 - Weather improving? Spain 2011 to 2012 Off to Spain! Otters at Martin Mere Beaver Webcam at Martin Mere Supernova in M101 Supernova in M51 Galaxy Run Morning observations More Almeria Birds 31st January 2011 - A clear night again! Cabrera - Red Legged Partridge Sierra Cabrera Larks Brilliant Venus Galaxy Images from last night's run Orchestrate file development based on the RC3 Catalogue. Telescope Assembly Return to Rivendell Setting up the CGEM 12" telescope without backstrain. Another clear night CGEM Pointing Test Moon, Venus and Saturn before dawn Clear spell last night 4 Days of cloud and rain Cabrera White Wagtail Leyland Observatory moves South for the winter - First Light at Sierra Cabrera Thursday 21st October 2010 - A very brief Supernova Search Astronomy Centre in Portugal - COAA Equipment Upgrade to Celestron 14 The Planet Uranus Heron under attack at Martin Mere Marsh Harriers, Sedge Warbler and Speckled Wood Butterfly at Leighton Moss Martin Mere Ron Barker Hide Buzzard, Reed Warblers and Heron at Slimbridge Slimbridge Saturday 22nd May 2010 Venus and Mercury from Spain Tom Boles dicovers Supernova number 129! 28th February 2010 - Abell Clusters Using a plate solution to centre an object and synch the telescope. Leyland Observatory Primary Optics upgraded Telescope Pointing Dome Laptop fails North aligning the camera. Testing Imaging at f/10 instead of normal f/6.3 Galaxy Run 16th October 2009 Galaxy Run 12th October 2009 Galaxy Imaging Run Galaxy Imaging 8 October 2009 Martin Mere 4 October 2009 Galaxy Template Library Creation Supernova 2009bv Supernova 2009bw as reported in The Astronomer Electronic Circular 2547 ABOUT THE SITE I try to log my observing and related activities in a regular blog - sometimes there will be a delay but I usually catch up. An index of all my blogs is on the main menu at the top of the page with daily, weekly or monthly views. My Twitter feed is below. I am also interested in photograping wildlife when I can and there is a menu option above to look at some of my images. I try to keep the news feeds from relevant astronomical sources up to date and you will need to scroll down to find these. The Celestron 14 is mounted on a Paramount ME that I have been using for about 10 years now - you can see that it is mounted on a tripod so is a portable set up. I still manage to transport it on my own and set it all up even though I have just turned 70! It will run for hours centering galaxies in the 12 minute field even when tripod mounted. MY RECENT TWEETS @lenadamastro The latest The History of Astronomy Weekly! https://t.co/Dx7XzYkBjJ Thanks to @FuturusSatoshi @lucadalzilio… https://t.co/lHbsdWeAWd about a year ago @lenadamastro Wildflower plan could transform Lancashire's roadsides into "wildlife havens" https://t.co/lArgvkKD3l about a year ago @lenadamastro The Len Adam Astronomy Weekly is out! https://t.co/7lz5hlIMAw Stories via @GuardianDigital @TawdrousF @ArmaghPlanet #apollo50th #apollo50 about a year ago @lenadamastro The latest The History of Astronomy Weekly! https://t.co/ibMrS7Iyg1 Thanks to @PolyhedronC @wildcardsseries @InnocentInsane #space #tech about a year ago @lenadamastro It was clear here in Spain so I managed to get a sequence of the partial lunar eclipse which started when the Moon… https://t.co/eQCAWWEsGi about a year ago @lenadamastro The Len Adam Astronomy Weekly is out! https://t.co/rBQPH2PERA Stories via @TawdrousF @mikesaltsman194 @AstroBioProf #physics #culturesways about a year ago @lenadamastro HiRISE Spots Curiosity Rover at Mars' 'Woodland Bay' https://t.co/vRNNRQOist about a year ago Older Follow @lenadamastro SOCIETY FOR THE HISTORY OF ASTRONOMY THE ASTRONOMER'S TELEGRAM AAVSO EARTH SKY ASTRO NEWS FROM JODRELL BANK ARTICLES FROM THE BRITISH ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION Welcome to my website which is based on amateur astronomy (which has largely taken over my life now) and also wildlife and general photography. (New non - astro blog is Just Blog on menu above - this blog is where I add my wildlife and general photographs and other interests and activities.) I am interested in Supernovae and in galaxies and spend every clear evening I can - much of the time in southern Spain but sometimes in the UK - imaging galaxies with my Celestron 14 telescope. It is an old scope, orange coloured originally now repainted red, and number 511 in the original series. I also have a growing interest in photometry and its use for variable star work and supernova light curves. I also have a CGEM mount with a Meade 4 inch refractor that I use with a Canon 40D modified DSLR, and a TAL1 4 inch refractor for visual use only. I am a member of the British Astronomical Association , a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, a member of the American Association of Variable Star Observers, a member of the Society for the History of Astronomy, a member of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and a member of the Wildlife and Wetlands Trust. I have recently joined the Norwich Astronomical Society. My astronomical interests are shown further down this column with images I have taken using my own equipment and some of my remote images and observations. My Lunar Eclipse images featured on the front page of the Norwich Astronomical Society Winter newsletter. Click the image immediately below to go to my Flickr Albums in a new window. Galaxy imaging with my C14 and Remote Telescope Services in Australia, the United States and Spain. Learning about practical photometry using BV filters on my C14 and photometric filters on remote telescopes. Supernova searching with automated scripting to point the telescope and take short exposure images. Finding out how to calculate stellar distances and temperatures and generate HR Diagrams for Open Star Clusters Remote imaging of interesting objects using a range of telescope types and cameras. The Tarantula Nebula The Great Nebula in Orion The Flame and Horsehead Nebulae NGC 1027 Open Cluster in Cassiopeia I also like to observe comets when I can COMET ISON Comet McNaught Imaging recent supernovae - this one was remotely imaged the same day of its discovery. Before and after the event - can you spot the supernova? NGC 6405 Copyright © 2015, Leyland Observatory All rights reserved.Please note that Standard English spelling is used throughout the website. Follow @lenadamastro