May marks one year since we got our 8” Celestron Evolution telescope! Amateur astronomy is not for the faint of heart or something that is easily taken on without a lot of support, but it has been a fun diversion during the pandemic.
This month’s photos are from only 2 evenings of observations, as on April 6th, the mount that holds the telescope died and I had to send it in for repairs. Hopefully I’ll have it back soon!
Spring is a time when you can look beyond the nebulosity of our own galaxy and see other galaxies, many of which are millions of light years away. Some we can see face on, such as M 101, the Pinwheel Galaxy, and M 51, the Whirlpool Galaxy (two galaxies that are linked together!). Others are seen at an angle to us, such as M 63 and M 64. Others are seen from their edge side, such as M 104 and NGC 4565.
Also included are images from our own galaxy with globular clusters, M 3 and M 53, which are stars that are tightly packed together. I did include one nebula, NGC 3587, the Owl Nebula.
I’ve also started labeling the photos with the constellations they are in, so we can all better learn about our neighborhood.
Clear Skies! Hank
