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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/10/2026

Last observation of the night. Another view of (from top to bottom) #Sh2-279 #TheRunningManNebula / #M43 #DeMairan'sNebula / #M42 #TheGreatNebulainOrion. Quick mosaic enlarging the height of the image. You will probably see more images of these from me soon […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Sh 2-279 Running Man Nebula / M43 De Mairan's Nebula / M42 The Great Nebula in Orion - telescope processed image. The running man nebula - The complex comprises three NGC reflection regions—NGC 1973, NGC 1975, and NGC 1977—divided by dark dust lanes that silhouette a running human figure.

Sh 2-279 Running Man Nebula / M43 De Mairan's Nebula / M42 The Great Nebula in Orion - unprocessed image. The running man nebula - Located just 0.6 degrees north of the Orion Nebula (M42), it is ionized and illuminated primarily by the bright young subgiant star 42 Orionis.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/10/2026

Here is the next image for the Dwarf Mini - #M110 #Galaxy / #M31 #TheAndromedaGalaxy / #M32 Galaxy. Last of the long duration observation for the Dwarf Mini. #dwarflabs #dwarfmini #space #astronomy #amateur

M110 Galaxy / M31 The Andromeda Galaxy / M32 Galaxy - telescope processed image. About half of Andromeda's ~30 satellite dwarf galaxies orbit the main system within an unexpectedly thin, co-rotating,

M110 Galaxy / M31 The Andromeda Galaxy / M32 Galaxy - unprocessed image. A vast tidal stream of stars loops far beyond M31's main disk, marking the ancient remnant debris of a dwarf galaxy shredded and engulfed by Andromeda.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/10/2026

Here is a new observation of #NGC6888 #TheCrescentNebula. This time using the Moon and Sky Light filter. #seestar #S50 #space #astronomy #amateur

NGC 6888 The Crescent Nebula - telescope processed image. Patrick Caldwell-Moore included this object as Caldwell 27 in his popular catalog designed to complement Charles Messier’s original list.

NGC 6888 The Crescent Nebula - unprocessed image. NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory revealed a diffuse bubble of million-degree gas filling the inner cavity behind the optical shock front.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/10/2026

Good Saturday morning everyone. Last night just decided to let the s50 and the Dwarf Mini observe 2 items each. First up is the Dwarf Mini’s observation of #NGC7000 #NorthAmericanNebula. #dwarflabs #dwarfmini #space #astronomy #amateur

NGC 7000 North American Nebula - telescope processed image. NGC 7000 is part of the same massive H II region as IC 5070 (Pelican Nebula), separated visually by dark interstellar dust lane LDN 935.

NGC 7000 North American Nebula - unprocessed image. Bright star Deneb was long thought to power it, but infrared surveys identified the true engine as hidden binary O-star HD 199579 behind dense dust.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Last post for today. Decided to let the Dwarf Mini and the s50 observe the same item. Here is #M43 #DeMairan'sNebula / #M42 #TheGreatNebulainOrion. #seestar #S50 #space #astronomy #amateur #dwarflabs #dwarfmini

M43 De Mairan's Nebula / M42 The Great Nebula in Orion - s50 telescope processed image. Hubble revealed over 150 protoplanetary disks (proplyds) inside M42, capturing solar systems in the earliest stages of forming planets around newborn stars.

M43 De Mairan's Nebula / M42 The Great Nebula in Orion - Dwarf Mini telescope processed image. The core illumination comes from the Trapezium Cluster, a tight four-star system where Theta-1 Orionis C generates most of the ionizing ultraviolet radiation.

M43 De Mairan's Nebula / M42 The Great Nebula in Orion - Dwarf Mini unprocessed image. Physically part of the main Orion Nebula, M43 is separated from M42’s central glow by a dense foreground dust lane cataloged as the Dark Bay.

M43 De Mairan's Nebula / M42 The Great Nebula in Orion - s50 unprocessed image. Unlike M42’s Trapezium cluster, M43 is ionized and illuminated almost entirely by a single massive, hot variable star designated NU Orionis.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Next up for the s50 is #SH2-171 #TheTeddyBearNebula. Even being a long-duration observation, the nebula is not very visible. #seestar #S50 #space #astronomy #amateur

SH2-171 The Teddy Bear Nebula - telescope processed image. Sh2-171 forms the southern emission region of the broader NGC 7822 star-forming complex, with its glowing gas loops shaping a distinct teddy bear face.

SH2-171 The Teddy Bear Nebula - unprocessed image. The central ionization driving the nebula comes from young open cluster Berkeley 59, which harbors BD+66 1673, one of the hottest nearby O-type stars.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

As you will see last night was a mostly nebula themed observation night. Here is #IC1318 - #GammaCygniNebula. #dwarflabs #dwarfmini #space #astronomy #amateur

IC 1318 - Gamma Cygni Nebula - telescope processed image. Supergiant star Sadr (Gamma Cygni) appears centrally located in the nebula, but it lies 1,800 light-years closer to Earth and does not illuminate the gas.

IC 1318 - Gamma Cygni Nebula - unprocessed image. The prominent dark nebula LDN 889 cuts through the center of IC 1318, splitting its glowing hydrogen clouds into two lobes known as the Butterfly Nebula.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Good morning everyone. Time to share some results from last night. First in the unsuccessful observation of #161PComet. #seestar #S50 #space #astronomy #amateur

161P Comet - telescope processed image. Not much to see in the image. I got excited probably to think a comet was visible that I didn’t check to see if it was bright enough.

161P Comet - unprocessed image. I assume the comet is there. Will find out more if it will be more visible shortly.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Good evening everyone. Decided to set the s50 and Dwarf Mini out for some observations. Here are some warm up shots from the s50 - #NGC6888 #TheCrescentNebula. Pretty impressed on the 10 minute observation no using the IR filter. Going to do a longer image […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

NGC 6888 The Crescent Nebula - telescope processed image. The delicate shell was formed when fast stellar winds from central Wolf-Rayet star WR 136 slammed into slower gas ejected when the star was a red supergiant.

NGC 6888 The Crescent Nebula - unprocessed image. Central star WR 136 is near the end of its life cycle and is expected to detonate as a catastrophic supernova within the next 100,000 years.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/09/2026

Starting with the observations from the s50 from last night. First up is #M57 #TheRingNebula. Sharing both IR filter and non-IR filter versions. You can notice the loss of stars in the IR filtered image. #seestar #S50 #space #astronomy #amateur

M57 The Ring Nebula - IR filtered processed image. Formed when a red giant ejected its outer layers, M57 provides a vivid preview of how our own Sun will shed its atmosphere in about 5 billion years.

M57 The Ring Nebula - non-IR processed image. The shell of ionized gas is expanding outward into deep space at a blistering speed of roughly 20 to 30 kilometers per second.

M57 The Ring Nebula - IR filtered unprocessed image. The distinct colors mark temperature zones: inner blue ionized helium, green oxygen in the ring, and cool red hydrogen around the outer edge.

M57 The Ring Nebula - non-IR unprocessed image. French astronomer Antoine Darquier de Pellepoix independent of Charles Messier reported it in 1779, describing it as resembling a fading planet.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/09/2026

Here is the last image of the Odyssey Pro from yesterday - #M102 #TheSpindleGalaxy. Noticed the Odyssey Pro seems to have issues tracking items. Time for service I suppose. #unistellar #odysseypro #space #astronomy #amateur

M102 The Spindle Galaxy - telescope processed image. M102 remains one of Messier’s most debated entries, with historians arguing whether it is NGC 5866 or a duplicate observation of M101.

M102 The Spindle Galaxy - unprocessed image. Viewed nearly edge-on, this lenticular galaxy features a strikingly thin, prominent dark dust lane cutting straight across its glowing bulge.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/09/2026

Good morning everyone. Took out the Odyssey Pro yesterday morning and had a lot of firmware to update before I could even use it. Here is the first image from yesterday morning - #M57 #TheRingNebula. #unistellar #odysseypro #space #astronomy #amateur

M57 The Ring Nebula - telescope processed image. Though it looks like a flat ring from Earth, it is actually a barrel-shaped cylinder of glowing gas tilted so we look almost directly down its central axis.

M57 The Ring Nebula - unprocessed image. The central dying star powering the nebula is an ultra-dense white dwarf with a surface temperature reaching a scorching 120,000 degrees Celsius.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 05/09/2026

Good Saturday morning. Happy Labor Day weekend. Decided time again to take out the s50 and Dwarf Mini telescopes. Starting with observations of #M27 #TheDumbbellNebula. Sharing the telescope processed and unprocessed of the observations and also the IR filter […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

M27 The Dumbbell Nebula - IR filter processed image. Discovered by Charles Messier in 1764, this glowing target was the very first planetary nebula ever observed in human history.

M27 The Dumbbell Nebula - IR filter unprocessed image. The dying star at its core has evolved into one of the largest known white dwarf stars, emitting high-energy ultraviolet radiation.

M27 The Dumbbell Nebula - non-IR filter processed image. The shell consists of gas expelled by its central star, offering a clear glimpse of what will happen to our Sun in 5 billion years.

M27 The Dumbbell Nebula - non-IR filter unprocessed image. While its core looks like an apple core or dumbbell, deep exposures reveal an intricate, double-lobed hourglass shape in space.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 16/08/2026

Next up for the Dwarf Mini is #UGC9749 #Galaxy. Supposed to be in the center of the image (I can’t see it). Surprised that it was recommended by the Dwarf Mini as I would imagine that a UGC object would be smaller than what the telescope should capture […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

UGC 9749 Galaxy - telescope processed image. This dwarf satellite galaxy of the Milky Way experienced just one burst of star formation roughly 14 billion years ago and contains almost no gas to form new stars.

UGC 9749 Galaxy - unprocessed image. Despite having very low brightness, it is dominated by massive amounts of dark matter, making it a key laboratory for studying cosmic gravitational forces.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 16/08/2026

Next up is the s50’s observation (top to bottom) #Sh2-54Nebula / #NGC6604 #cluster. #seestar #S50 #space #astronomy #amateur

Sh2-54 Nebula / NGC 6604 cluster - telescope processed image. Sh2-54 Nebula: This vast emission nebula is powered by high-energy ultraviolet radiation emitted by the young, massive stars embedded deep inside it.

Sh2-54 Nebula / NGC 6604 cluster - unprocessed image. NGC 6604 Cluster: This open cluster powers a rare "chimney" structure, venting hot gas and cosmic plasma high above the plane of our Milky Way galaxy.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 16/08/2026

Good Sunday morning. Back with some observations - last ones were 28 days ago. Starting with #UGC9858 #Galaxy. Just a warm up image until the scheduled observations on the Dwarf Mini were to occur. You can see the small galaxy in the center of the image […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

UGC 9858 Galaxy - telescope processed image. Classified as an SBb/Sc barred spiral, its central bar of stars funnels cosmic gas inward toward the galaxy's core.

UGC 9858 Galaxy - unprocessed image. Glowing at a dim 14th magnitude, it requires large amateur telescopes or long-exposure photography to be seen clearly.

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Oskar Contreras @tg8arc.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 20/07/2026

Last image of the night for the #NGC6992 #TheEasternVeilNebula. I have to figure out is there is a way to adjust the image on the Dwarf Mini similar to the s50. #dwarflabs #dwarfmini #space #astronomy #amateur

NGC 6992 The Eastern Veil Nebula - telescope processed image. The elements blasted out by this ancient explosion—like iron, carbon, and oxygen—are the exact raw materials needed to build future planets.

NGC 6992 The Eastern Veil Nebula - unprocessed image. While it looks like a tiny wisp in amateur telescopes, this portion of the nebula actually spans an immense distance of roughly 30 light-years across.

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