IC 443 is commonly called “The Jellyfish Nebula” due to its appearance. It is a “Supernova Remnant”, that is, the remains of a star that violently exploded 5,000 to 30,000 years ago. The spherical shape suggests that the explosion is still in progress, originating from the centre.

It resides about 5,000 light-years distance and is approximately 70 light-years in diameter. It is far too faint to be visible unaided, but, if it were, it would appear larger than the full moon.

The spherical blast wave from the explosion is thrusting (above) into the residing cloud of dust and gas in this galactic region. Below it, the blast wave is being absorbed by another smaller galactic cloud.

The Jellyfish Nebula is a favorite target for both amateurs and professionals. However, its history is still perplexing, debated.

I photographed the Jellyfish Nebula from my garden in Strasbourg France in mid-February 2024. 45 x 300 sec.

The magnificent Orion Nebula: The darling of amateur astrophotographers, the Queen of the Winter Sky. It is the brightest nebula in the night sky and easily viewable with binoculars. It is an easy target for beginners, so how can you resist such a beautiful deep-space subject?

At a distance of only 1,300 light years, consider it nearby on the scale of our Milky Way galaxy. It is the closest region of massive star formation, a stellar nursery.

I photographed the Orion Nebula from my garden in Strasbourg France in early February 2024. 46 photos x 60 seconds each.

Bode’s Galaxy (centre) is catalogued as Messier-81. In the bottom-left is the irregularly-shaped “Cigar Galaxy”, catalogued as Messier-82.

Bode’s Galaxy is about 12 million light years distance, which is close, on a cosmic scale. It is a bright object, and a favourite target for researchers and amateurs. In 2022, “fast radio bursts” were detected. These are rare radio sources that, as yet, cannot be explained.

The Cigar Galaxy is small compared to our Milky Way galaxy, but it is much more luminous. It is classified as a “Starburst Galaxy” because it is an extremely active area of star formation. Adding to the mystery of this strange galaxy was the recent discovery of a unique radio source that might be from a “micro-quasar”, but cannot be fully explained.

At the right of this image is the third member of the “M81 Group”, the small disrupted elliptical galaxy NGC 3077.

I photographed the Messier-81 group of galaxies from my garden in Strasbourg France on two cold evening in January 2024.

70 images x 180 seconds each.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messier_81

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messier_82

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/NGC_3077

IC-1805 has the colloquial name “The Heart Nebula” because of its shape. It is 7,500 light years distance from us, which is nearby, on a galactic scale. It is 165 light years in length.

The intense billowing red clouds of hot hydrogen contrast visually with the interspersed dark dust lanes. Most of this energy originates with the cluster of stars at the bright centre.

I photographed IC-1805 from my garden in Strasbourg France on 2 nights in September 2023. This is an aggregation of 61 photos, where each photo was a 5 minute exposure.

The Veil Nebula is a large area of superheated gas and dust visually located in the constellation of Cygnus, the Swan. It is 2,400 light years distance, which is considered nearby, on a galactic scale. All together, it looks like pieces of torn lace. This fragment is called: the Eastern Veil.

If your intuition suggests that it is the remnants of a very violent stellar event, then you are correct. About 15,000 years ago, a star 20 times the size of our sun violently exploded, leaving this interstellar debris. Hence, it is classified as a “Supernova Remnant”.

The French have a beautiful name for the Veil Nebula. They call it: “les dentelles du Cygne”, “The lace of the Swan”.

I photographed the Eastern Veil from my garden in Strasbourg France on two warm nights in early September 2023. This is a composite of 75 photos, where each was a 3 minute exposure.

Messier-17 has several names: the Swan, the Omega, the Horseshoe. It is an intense star-forming region that is nearby, on a galactic scale (5,000 light years distance).

The predominant pink colour suggests hydrogen heated by several intense young stars in the bright centre.

Our eyes are drawn to the swirling dust and gas surrounding the intense core of the nebula.

I photographed Messier-17 from my balcony in Strasbourg France on three nights in July 2023. This is a composite of 57 x 3 minute exposures.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega_Nebula

The Strasbourg Astronomical Observatory was build in 1880 when Strasbourg was part of the German Empire. In this period, the nearby German neighborhood of Neustadt flourished, as did the University of Strasbourg, the Observatory and the Botanical Gardens.

It is a magnificent instrument demonstrating a commitment to understanding the great mysteries of the cosmos.

It is very well maintained and absolutely breathtaking to see.

The Pleiades is a nearby cluster of hot blue stars which are illuminating the gas and dust between them.

It is readily visible to our eyes, even in large cities. Look to the east this evening. With an apparent size about half that of a full moon, it is quite impressive.

Countless ancient cultures documented their impressions of it. Europeans call it the “Seven Sisters”, referring to Greek mythology. The Japanese named it “Subaru”.

This is an aggregate of 46 images where each photo was a 5 minute exposure. You need long exposures to reveal the faint reflecting dust clouds.

I photographed the Pleiades Cluster from my terrace in Strasbourg France over three nights in October 2022.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleiades

#pleiadescluster #pleiades #messier45 #m45 #messierobjects #astronomy #astrophotography #astrophotographie #astrophotographiefrance #poussièredétoiles

https://www.instagram.com/p/CkTmDw4Miv8/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

The Cocoon Nebula is a nearby star-forming region of our galaxy. The beautiful poppy-colour suggests strong hydrogen emissions, as you expect for a stellar nursery. On a galactic scale, it is close by: 3,000 light years. Another example of a beautiful interstellar object nearby in our galactic neighborhood. I photographed the Cocoon Nebula from my garden in Strasbourg France on two nights in July 2022, 80 x 180 seconds each. Processed in PixInsight. #cocoonnebula #ic5146 #icobjects #milkyway #voielactée #astrophoyography #astrophotographie #astrophotographiefrance (at Strasbourg, France) https://www.instagram.com/p/CgUtkG-sWXw/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

The Pleiades is a tight cluster of stars that has fascinated us for thousands of years. The Europeans called it “the Seven Sisters”, the Japanese called it “Subaru”, ancient Arabs called it “al-Ṯurayyā”, in India, it was “Kṛittika”, and in China it was “mǎo”.

It is easily visible, even in large cities, and is quite surprising when viewed for the first time. This tight cluster of stars occupies a space about that of a full moon. In February, in the northern hemisphere, it will be almost overhead in mid-evening. Be prepared for a “what the heck is that” moment.

It is only 444 light-years distance, which is very close on a galactic scale. The nine bright stars of the cluster are considered middle-aged and unusually hot. This brightens the interstellar dust and gas between them. However, this dust and gas is cold, and only passively reflects the light from the main stars.

For amateur astrophotographers, the challenge is to reveal the chaotic streaks in the faint reflective clouds, as they suggest complex gravitational forces.

Together, these clouds have a memorable shape. Some say it looks like a ballerina in a tutu, others say it looks like a blue butterfly with its gossamer wings extended.

I photographed the Pleiades from my garden in Strasbourg France on 3 nights in January and February 2024. 57 x 5 minute exposures (almost 5 hours).

The Messier-16 Nebula was popularized in the 1990’s by the Hubble Space Telescope. It drew our attention to the columns of dust and gas at the center that it aptly named “The Pillars of Creation”.

The pink colour does suggests that this is a star-forming region, and our understanding of how these columns form does support this.

The legacy of Hubble draws amateurs to photograph this site. After thirty years, we have much better cameras, and vastly more powerful computers at our disposal and can render photos that challenge the Hubble photos from thirty years ago.

Traditionally, there is another name for this structure at the centre: The “Star Queen”. Can you see the whimsical profile of the Queen in her pink robes on the throne?

I photographed the Pillars of Creation from my balcony in Strasbourg France over three nights in May 2023. This is an aggregate of 45 images, where each image was a 3 minute exposure.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle_Nebula

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pillars_of_Creation

Messier-104 is called the “Sombrero Galaxy” because it has a prominent edge like a Mexican hat.

We are viewing it edge-on, and this draws our attention to the contrasting fine dark details revealed at the centre.

The Sombrero Galaxy also has an unusual cloud of dust and gas surrounding it, making it more mysterious than those with the classic pinwheel shape.

This galaxy is 30 million light years distance for earth. In perspective: a radio message to the moon takes about 1 second and to the planets it takes several minutes. However, a radio message to the Sombrero Galaxy takes 30 million years.

This final image is an aggregate of 38 photos where each was a 3 minute exposure. These were considered the best of 68 captured images. I photographed Messier-104 from my balcony in Strasbourg France over two nights in April 2023.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sombrero_Galaxy

The Orion Nebula. Certainly the darling of amateur astrophotographers, but, isn’t it beautiful? The Orion Nebula is the brightest nebula in the sky. It is readily visible via binoculars in the constellation of Orion. On a galactic scale it is close-by at 1,500 light years. However keep this distance in perspective: a radio message to the moon takes about 1-2 seconds. To the nearby planets: several minutes. To the Orion Nebula a message takes about 1,500 years. I photographed the Orion Nebula from my balcony in Strasbourg France on a rare clear night in December 2022. #orionnebula #m42 #messier42 #messierobjects #astrophotography #astrophotographiefrance #blurxterminator #noisexterminator (at Strasbourg, France) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmhIBBUs4bo/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

This is a wide-field view of the star-forming region in the constellation of Cepheus. The Elephant Trunk Nebula appears here near the center as a small dark circular cloud-outline surrounding a bright star. It is close by at 2,400 light years distance. This is a rework of 40 x 5 minute images that I captured at Astrofarm in 2021. #elephanttrunknebula #ic1396 #ic1396nebula #cepheusconstellation #starformingregion #interstellargasclouds #interstellargascloud #interstellarspace #interstellargas #interstellargasanddust #astrophotography #astrophotographiefrance #poussieredetoile #poussierdetoiles #deepspacephotography #deepspace #astronomy #astronomie #astronomiefrance (at Astrofarm) https://www.instagram.com/p/CiNVT_OMfBA/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

An iconic astrophotography subject: the Andromeda Galaxy. At 2.5 million light years, it is the nearest galaxy to us. This is an ensemble of 70 photos: 40 were captured with an L-Enhance filter at Astrofarm France (July 2022) and 30 were captured with an L-Pro filter in Strasbourg (August 2022). The L-Enhance filter emphases, in red, the hydrogen-rich star-forming areas, and the L-Pro filter generally enhances galaxy details, and suppresses the ambient artificial light in cities. This combination did highlight, in red, several spiral arms that are richer in hydrogen than others. #andromeda #andromedagalaxy #messier31 #m31 #messierobjects #messierobject #astrophotography #astrophotographie #astrophotographiefrance #astronomy #astronomie #poussieredetoile #poussieresdetoiles #poussièredétoiles (at Strasbourg, France) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ch9ZdwMM22X/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=