With a nod to sci-fi author Vernor Vinge, this site is dedicated to the magnificence of the "deepness in the sky" -- in New Jersey and elsewhere. More than ever before, we need to see and appreciate the wonders of the celestial sphere and allow this to enhance our perspective on our purpose and role on this planet. We can become inspired to seriously address the process of reclaiming access to the night sky by reducing sources of light pollution.
Through this website, I hope to show that challenges to astronomy and seeing the sky posed by outdoor light pollution, skyglow, and a dense wet atmosphere can be overcome. Some optical and electronic equipment and techniques are needed, of course, as are patience and motivation. Yet if here in NJ, then anywhere! -- Rex Parker
Many of the astro images here were acquired from my NJ home backyard observatory, with a 12.5" f/6.7 AG Optical Systems iDK telescope on a Paramount MX running under TheSkyX software and sometimes using ACP with Maxim-DL. The NJ camera is a ZWO ASI-071 with color CMOS sensor, and in some cases an Atik 383L+ CCD or SBIG ST-10XME. The Gallery shows results of many hours of photon exposure with typically 15-20 min subframes.
In comparison some images are from remote telescopes in the Chilean Andes, at Cerro Tololo (CTIO) or since 2021 from El Sauce Observatory in the Coquimbo Region of Chile. The telescopes employed are a 16" R-C at CTIO (thanks to Dr Dan Reichart, Univ NC Chapel Hill) and a 24" Planewave CDK at El Sauce (thanks to Stan Watson, Mark Hanson, and Steve Mazlin). Both scopes use KAF-16803 CCD based imaging cameras. A few images were from Mt Lemmon AZ with the 32" Schulman reflector and 16803 camera (thanks to Adam Block).
Click on panels below for images
Nebulae
2021-07-12interstellar clouds of glowing gas & dust...
Galaxies
2021-07-12island universes of billions of stars......
Star Clusters
2021-09-09vast "cities of stars" within our galaxy....
Supernova Remnants
The spectacle after a massive star...
Solar System
planets, moons, comets, transits...
My Backyard Observatory
where the data come from...
How-to Videos by Rex Parker
down to earth talk about stellar subjects...
Mt Lemmon Astroimaging Workshop
slide show from Tucson field trip...
Measuring Algol's Light Curve with CCD Camera
famed variable star
