April 2023 is an exciting time for stargazers as there are several celestial objects to observe in the night sky. From galaxies to star clusters, nebulas and eclipses, the Universe offers an abundance of beautiful and mesmerizing astronomical wonders to explore.
In this blog post, we’ll take a closer look at five of the most interesting objects to observe in the sky during April 2023.
The Andromeda Galaxy
The Andromeda Galaxy, also known as M31, is a spiral galaxy located approximately 2.5 million light-years away from Earth. It is the closest galaxy to our Milky Way and can be seen with the naked eye on a clear night away from light pollution. It appears as a faint fuzzy patch in the constellation Andromeda. With a telescope, you can see its spiral arms and its bright core. The Andromeda Galaxy is a beautiful sight and is worth observing in April.
The Beehive Cluster, also known as M44, is an open cluster located in the constellation Cancer. It is visible to the naked eye as a small fuzzy patch. With a telescope, you can see its many stars that sparkle like diamonds. The Beehive Cluster is one of the nearest and brightest open clusters to Earth. It is a beautiful sight and worth observing in April.
The Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters, is an open star cluster located in the constellation Taurus. It is visible to the naked eye as a small cluster of stars. With a telescope, you can see its many stars, gas, and dust clouds. The Pleiades is one of the most famous and easily recognized open clusters in the night sky. It is an excellent target for beginners and experienced stargazers alike.
The Rosette Nebula, also known as NGC 2237, is a beautiful emission nebula located in the constellation Monoceros. This large, circular nebula appears as a faint, reddish-pink cloud and is visible with a telescope. It gets its name from its rose-like shape and intricate details, which make it a popular target for astrophotographers. The Rosette Nebula is an awe-inspiring object to observe and is definitely worth checking out in April 2023.
Eclipse in the Southern Hemisphere: Hybrid Solar Eclipse
On April 20, a total solar eclipse sweeps over the North West Cape, a remote peninsula of Western Australia. It’s also visible from parts of East Timor and the Indonesian province of West Papua.
What is a hybrid solar eclipse? A hybrid solar eclipse, also known as an annular-total eclipse, is a rare type of solar eclipse that occurs when the Moon’s shadow passes over the Earth, but the apparent size of the Moon is not large enough to completely cover the Sun.
April 2023 is an excellent time for stargazers to explore the southern hemisphere and observe some of the most beautiful and fascinating objects in the night sky and witness the eclipse!
If you’re interested in exploring the night sky, why not try stargazing this April? All you need is a clear night and Vespera.
We were thrilled to discover that Nebula Photos, a popular YouTube channel dedicated to outdoor photography and gear reviews, recently did a review video about Vespera. In this blog post, we’ll be highlighting three key points from his video that showcase Vespera‘s impressive capabilities, how to unlock the secrets of the Universe with it and why it’s a great investment for any astronomy enthusiast.
In this YouTube video titled “Can I beat a ROBOT at Astrophotography?”, astrophotographer Nico compares the Vaonis Vespera observation station to his own astrophotography kit made from spare parts.
Unlock the Secrets of the Universe with Vespera | 3 points from his review
Vespera Review | Automation and easy to use
One of the standout features of Vespera‘s telescope, according to Nebula Photos, is its capacity of automation. Additionally, the telescope is designed to be easy to set up and use, making it a great option for beginners or anyone looking for a hassle-free stargazing experience.
Vespera Review | Impressive image quality
Nebula Photos was particularly impressed by the image quality produced by Vespera‘s telescope. He notes that the telescope’s large aperture allows for clear and detailed views of celestial objects, even in low light conditions. He also highlights the telescope’s high-quality optics, which he says contribute to the overall sharpness and clarity of the images.
Vespera Review | Versatile and customizable
Finally, Nebula Photos highlights the telescope’s versatility and customizable features. He notes that the telescope comes with a variety of filters that allow users to customize their viewing experience based on their specific needs and interests.
Conclusion
Nico discusses the pros and cons of both systems, including weight, packability, upgradeability, cost, flexibility, and results. He also compares the walking noise between the two setups, noting that adding a cheap guide scope and autoguiding camera can minimize or eliminate it.
Overall, Nebula Photos‘ review of Vespera is overwhelmingly positive. He notes that the telescope is a great option for both beginners and experienced stargazers alike, and praises its portability, image quality, and versatility. If you’re in the market for a new telescope, be sure to check out Nebula Photos‘ review of Vespera‘s offering for a more in-depth analysis.
March 2023 may be a particularly interesting time for astronomers. This month, an array of phenomena can be observed and studied in the night sky. From historically significant astronomical events to constellations and objects visible with the naked eye, the skies of March will provide astronomers plenty of opportunities to explore and understand the universe and its many mysteries. In this blog post, we will discuss the many wonders that await astronomers in March 2023.
Galaxy: Messier 82
Located in the constellation Ursa Major, Messier 82 (M82) is a starburst galaxy that is approximately 12 million light-years away from Earth. This galaxy is notable for its bright, elongated shape, due to the presence of large amounts of gas and dust being pushed out of the galaxy by intense bursts of star formation.
One of the most famous and beautiful nebulae in the night sky, the Orion Nebula (also known as Messier 42) is a vast cloud of gas and dust that is located in the constellation Orion. This nebula is one of the closest regions of active star formation to Earth, and it is home to many young, hot stars.
Enhance your experience of M42 using our CovalENS technology, which enables you to change the composition of your photos with bigger frames, as seen on this amazing image shot by Sébastien Aubry.
M11, also known as the Wild Duck Cluster, is a stunning star cluster located in the constellation Scutum. It’s best observed during the months of summer, but it can be seen in March 2023 as it rises higher in the sky throughout the night. Using Vespera or Stellina, you’ll be able to see dozens of bright stars arranged in a loose, open cluster. The cluster is estimated to be around 220 million years old and located approximately 6,000 light-years away from Earth. It’s a popular target for amateur astronomers and is definitely worth checking out if you have a telescope and clear skies.
Object visible from the Southern Hemisphere: The Carina Nebula
Located in the constellation Carina, the Carina Nebula is a massive cloud of gas and dust that is home to many young, hot stars. This nebula is one of the brightest and most active regions of star formation in the Milky Way, and it is a favorite target for astronomers and astrophotographers alike.
Comet C/2022 E3
Discovered on March 1st, 2022, by Richard Grauer, comet C/2022 E3 is a long-period comet that is currently making its way through the inner solar system. In March 2023, the comet will be visible in the constellation Auriga, and it is expected to reach peak brightness around the middle of the month.
To observe comet C/2022 E3 with your Vaonis instrument, make sure to check out our article to set your observation station on manual mode here.
E3 Comet by Phillip McGee
Curious for more?
In addition to these specific objects, one of the most significant astronomical events of March 2023 will be the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn. This rare event, often referred to as the “Great Conjunction”, occurs when the two largest planets in the solar system align in the night sky. Although conjunctions between Jupiter and Saturn happen approximately every 20 years, this particular event will be unique because it will be the closest alignment of the two planets since the Middle Ages. This rare alignment will be visible to the naked eye and will provide astronomers with an opportunity to study the solar system’s largest planets in a way that hasn’t been possible in centuries.
In conclusion, March 2023 offers plenty of exciting objects and events to observe in the night sky. From galaxies to nebulae, star clusters to comets, there is something for everyone to enjoy. With the right equipment and a little bit of patience, you can witness some of the most awe-inspiring sights the universe has to offer.
What can we observe in the sky in January 2023? In our solar system, several events will take place at the beginning of this new year.
First, on January 4, the Earth will pass at perihelion. In its elliptical trajectory around the Sun, this day will mark the minimum distance between our planet and its star.
The distance will be 147 098 925 km, which is about 5 million kilometers closer than the maximum distance between the two objects.
Also on January 4, the Quadrantid shower will reach its peak of activity : between 60 and 200 meteors per hour are expected to light up the night sky.
The radiant point, the place where the shooting stars seem to come from, is located in the constellation of the Cattleman in the direction of the Big Dipper. Its name comes from an ancient constellation, the Quadrans Muralis created in 1795 by the astronomer Jérôme Lalande. The name referred to a tool used by astronomers. The constellation was deleted in 1922 when the International Astronomer Union (IAU) formalized the names of the 88 constellations in our sky.
Discovered in spring 2022, the comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will animate this beginning of year. On January 12, it will pass at perihelion at about 1.1 times the distance from Earth to the Sun.
The name of the comet follows the official nomenclature for naming these objects. The “C” indicates that the comet is not periodic or that it takes more than 200 years to complete its orbit. “2022 E3” indicates that it is a comet discovered in 2022 in early March. “(ZTF)” is the reference to the research team that made the discovery, namely the Zwicky Transient Facility located at Mount Palomar in California.
After this date, the comet will be on its way to Earth: it should pass close to us on February 1st at only 0,28 astronomical unit, or about 100 times the distance to the Earth’s moon.
In the best case, the comet should be visible to the naked eye. Estimates of brightness should improve after its closest passage to the Sun.
In the deep sky, several objects depending on your position can be observed in ideal conditions during this month of January.
There is for example M47, an open cluster in the constellation of the Puppis, which will pass at most in the sky on January 15. You will be able to use the mosaic modeto capture on the same image M47 as well as M46 another open cluster and the planetary nebula NGC 2438.
Also at its highest point in the sky on January 15, the spiral galaxy NGC 2403 in the constellation Giraffe will also be in ideal conditions to be photographed with your instrument.
What can we observe in the sky in December? For this last month of the year, Mars will be in the sky several times, accompanied by beautiful showers of shooting stars!
The planet Mars will offer us several events in December
On December 1st, as it does every 780 days, the Red Planet will pass close to Earth. During this visit, Mars will be at 81 million kilometers from us this time around. As the trajectory of the planet is eccentric, it does not describe a circle but an ellipse, consequently the minimum distance between the two planets varies between 55 million and 120 million km.
The configuration of 2022 is therefore not the most optimal. It will be necessary to wait for the next transits in 2035 and 2050 for the planet to be as close as possible.
To witness the next record of proximity between the two planets, we will have to wait until August 28th, 2287. The distance will be only 55.758 million km, that is to say 70,000 km less than the previous record of 2003.
A few days later, on December 8th, the planet will be in opposition: the Sun-Earth-Mars system will be aligned.
On the same day, in some parts of the world, Mars will be playing hide-and-seek with the Full Moon. In Western Europe, Canada and a large part of the United States, the Red Planet will pass behind the last Full Moon of the year. During about 1 hour, between 2H17 UTC and 6H10 UTC, depending on your position, the planet will disappear behind our natural satellite.
Finally, Mars will be visible simultaneously with the other planets of the solar system at the end of the twilight.
For Uranus and Neptune, you will need an instrument to observe them.
The others will be visible with the naked eye.
Solstice December 21 21h48 UTC
December 21st, at 21:48 UTC, will mark the December solstice.
For the Northern Hemisphere, it will be the longest night of the year and the beginning of winter for temperate regions. For the Southern Hemisphere, it will be the shortest night of the year and the beginning of summer in temperate areas.
Showers of shooting stars
Geminid meteor shower
Between December 4 and 17, the Earth will pass through the dust and small rocky particles left by the asteroid Phaeton. These fragments will burn up in the atmosphere and offer a shower of shooting stars. The peak of activity is expected on December 14 with rates up to 120 shooting stars per hour depending on your location.
Ursids meteor Shower
After the Geminid shower, the Ursids will take over between December 17 and 26. The Earth will then pass through the dust deposited by the comet Tuttle. The maximum activity is expected on December 22. The number of shooting stars will be a few dozen per hour.
Deep sky
December 13
For those in the Southern Hemisphere, the Large Magellanic Cloud will be high in the sky and in good observing conditions. The new Mosaic mode will allow you to observe different regions of this galaxy, such as the Tarantula Nebula and the open clusters surrounding it. You can also explore another part of the LMC by observing the open cluster NGC 1761 and its environment also rich in clusters and nebulosities.
For those in the Northern Hemisphere, the Rosette Nebula will be in good observing conditions in December. It will reach its peak on December 30. Take advantage of the Mosaic mode to get an observation of the whole area.
What can we observe in the sky in November? The end of the year will be rich in observations of the sky and this month of November is already starting with a total lunar eclipse, visible on the west coast of the United States, Australia and East Asia, in particular.
Ceres passes through the Leo triplet between November 6th & 7th
Between November 6th & 7th, the dwarf planet Ceres will pass through the Leo Triplet in the sky. This will obviously be a visual effect in our sky because the smallest dwarf planet in the solar system with a size of 950 km is only about 400 million kilometers away from us while the M65, M66 and Hamburger galaxies are 35 million light years away.
Total lunar Eclipse on November 8th
After the partial eclipse of the Sun on October 25th, the Sun, the Earth and the Moon will play together again to offer us a new event in the sky. This time, the alignment of the 3 objects will be different because the Earth will be in the middle of the trio. The Moon will be totally in the shadow of the Earth and will not perceive the light of the Sun during this total lunar eclipse. The phenomenon will be visible everywhere where it will be dark on November 8 between 09:10 and 12:49 UTC, mainly the Americas, Asia and Oceania.
Uranus in opposition on November 9th
The seventh planet of the solar system will be at opposition on November 9th. The ice giant planet will be located a few degrees from the full Moon. In eastern Asia and Alaska, the opposition of the planet will be accompanied by an occultation by the Moon the day before.
Leonid on November 18th
During the month of November, the Earth passes through the residues left by the comet Tempel-Tuttle. About 10 tons of debris weighing less than a gram for sizes smaller than10mm come to burn in our atmosphere.
On the night of November 18, this Leonids shooting star shower will reach its maximum activity. In the direction of the constellation Leo, about 15 meteors per hour should be visible.
Trivia : The comet officially referenced as 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, was discovered independently by astronomers Ernest Tempel on December 19, 1865 and Horace Parnell Tuttle on January 6, 1866. It has a period of 33 years. Its latest passage to the Sun was on February 28, 1998 and its next one is scheduled for May 20, 2031, according to its current trajectory.
M45, the Pleiades well placed in the sky
During the night of November 18, the 7 sisters of the Pleiades and their parents Atlas and Pleioné will reach their highest point in the night sky. The open cluster will be in optimal conditions to be observed. In the sky, following the imaginary line formed by the stars Sirius, Orion’s belt and Aldebaran, you will discover a small group of 5 bright stars. After some time of adaptation, your eye should distinguish a little more and in excellent conditions of observation and with a good view, you should distinguish 12 of them. Using your instrument and the beta version of Singularity’s Mosaic mode, you should be able to detect a few dozen stars among the thousand objects contained in the open cluster.
Discover CovalENS, the first “panorama mode” ever built into a telescope, allowing you to explore a much larger area of the sky than the original field of view of your instrument, and create your own panorama of the Universe. Vespera and Stellina now offer an innovative observing mode that allows you to automatically obtain views of the sky that are much wider than normally allowed by the characteristics of the instrument. With the same observing station, you now have a wider window on the Universe and more opportunities to capture unique images.
1 – What are the new possibilities offered by the capture of mosaics ?
Stellina and Vespera have a fixed field of view which is determined by the focal length of each instrument and the size of their sensors.
For Stellina, this field of view is 1° x 0.7° and for Vespera 1.6° x 0.9°.
Many deep sky objects as well as the Moon and the Sun (observable with the optional sun filter are smaller in size and then can be observed and photographed in their entirety. But there are also some objects or groups of objects that are larger in size and therefore can’t be seen in their entirety in the captured images. For example, the Great Andromeda Galaxy is about 3° at its longest dimension (6 times the full Moon!).
The mosaic mode extends the field of view of Stellina and Vespera, allowing you to see larger objects and regions of the universe. It is like having a second observation station for the large field.
The Andromeda galaxy captured with Vespera in mosaic mode (unprocessed image, integration time: 2 hours). The image represents a FOV of 2.8° x 2.1°. The white rectangle represents the native field of Vespera and the blue rectangle the native field of Stellina.
With the mosaic capture, you can now :
obtain more complete images of large deep sky objects such as the Andromeda Galaxy, the Rosette Nebula (Monoceros constellation), the Carina Nebula, the Heart Nebula (Cassiopeia constellation), the Small Magellanic Cloud, large star clusters such as the Pleiades…
better explore the environment of large nebulas, such as the Great Orion Nebula or the Horsehead Nebula, the region of the Tarantula Nebula or the nebula-rich regions of the Milky Way’s center
obtain, in the same view, sets of nebulas such as the Lagoon Nebula and the Trifid Nebula (Sagittarius constellation) but also views gathering several star clusters such as M46 and M47 (Puppis constellation)
capture small asterisms or groups of stars with a particular aesthetic, such as Kemble’s Cascade (Camelopardalis constellation)
it was already possible to visualise, in the same field, groups of galaxies such as M81 and M82, but now larger groups are available: the Leo cluster of galaxies or the Markarian Chain, Coma Cluster
Mosaic dimensions and specificities according to the observation station
The user can choose the dimensions and proportions of the mosaic in the Singularity interface (see part 3). The maximum field of view at the sensor proportions is 3.2° x 1.8° and for Stellina 2° x 1.4°.
Vespera users benefit from the possibility of capturing images with a higher resolution than the sensor resolution, up to 8.2 megapixels, thanks to the mosaic mode.
The maximum resolution of a mosaic made with Stellina is 6.4 megapixels.
The framing of a mosaic is defined in relation to the north/south orientation of the sky (equatorial orientation), so that Vespera users are not dependent on the orientation of celestial objects in the field of view, which varies according to the time of observation.
The innovative process developped by Vaonis to capture these wide field images (see part 2) allows you to benefit from a “dithering” effect (the same portion of the sky is captured successively by different areas of the sensor) which attenuates the impact of the inherent defects of the sensor (noise, hot pixels) and allows to obtain a final rendering of better quality.
Summary of mosaic characteristics
Stellina
Vespera
native field of view of the telescope
1° x 0,7°
1,6° x 0,9°
extended field max. size (sensor ratio)
2° x 1,4°
3,2° x 1,8°
extended field max. size (square)
1,7° x 1,7°
2,4° x 2,4°
extended field max. size (horizontal)
2,8° x 1
3,6° x 1,6°
extended field max. size (vertical)
0,7° x 4°
0,9° x 6,4°
extended field max. definition
6,4 Mpx
8,2 Mpx
2 – How does mosaic capture work?
Vaonis has developed an innovative method of image capture that allows users to obtain an image of the extended field in an optimum time, while simultaneously proceeding to the stacking of images, essential in astrophotography to obtain a satisfactory quality rendering.
The process of making a mosaic is completely automatic.
After launching the observation in mosaic mode, your observation station progressively scans the field that you have defined in the Singularity application by shifting the pointing of the telescope in small steps. Simultaneously, images are captured to compose the mosaic. As the images are captured, the large overlapping portions of the images are used to stack these areas.
The video below shows a time-lapse of the process, visible in the Singularity application.
An observation time of approximately 60 minutes (integration time displayed in your Singularity application) is required for your observation station to scan the entire extended field and provide a high-quality image of the mosaic.
If you decide to continue observing once the mosaic is complete, the extra time will be used to perform additional scans of the field and thus gradually improve the overall quality of the final image.
After 120 minutes of observation (the integration time displayed in your Singularity application), you will have an image of the entire field of significantly better quality, allowing you to manually process the image to bring out the finer details, for example.
Caption: The Andromeda Galaxy M31, captured by Vespera with an integration time of 2 hours and processed with Affinity Photo and Starnet applications ++ (image : Sébastien Aubry – @adventurerofthethirplanet )
The Rosette Nebula, captured by Vespera with an integration time of 2.5 hours and processed with the Affinity Photo and Starnet ++ applications. The frames superimposed on the image represent the native fields of Stellina (in blue) and Vespera (in white). (image : Sébastien Aubry – @adventurerofthethirplanet )
3 – How to use the panorama mode with your observation station
Singularity provides a simple and intuitive interface that allows you to select the region of the sky for a mosaic, taking into account the size and shape of the celestial objects you want to include.
As with all observations with Vespera and Stellina, the starting point for obtaining an extended field view is to search for your target in the Singularity app explorer page. In the beta mode, the mosaic mode works with manuel targets but is not compatible with the “Plan my Night” feature.
If your target is not listed in Singularity’s catalog, you can choose another nearby object available in the catalog and navigate to your target or define a manual target.
Once your target has been identified, Singularity will offer you the options of starting a classic observation or starting a mosaic.
If you choose the latter option, Singularity will show you a map of the sky centered on your target and representing the surrounding area.
The map displays all the deep sky objects, indicating their overall shape for large nebulas and their size and their orientation for galaxies and star clusters. The brightest stars are also displayed.
A white rectangle is superimposed on the map and delimits the field that will be captured by your observing station when you start the mosaic.
Pull the handles in the corners of this rectangle to change the size and proportions of the area. The top banner on the screen shows the dimensions of the field in degrees.
Drag the map to frame the targets you wish to include in the field.
Singularity’s interface for defining the size and framing of your mosaic: (1) Pull the handles of the frame to change its size and proportions. (2) Move the map to refine your composition.
When you are happy with your framing, launch the observation and your telescope will begin capturing the mosaic and show you its progress in real time as it acquires the individual images.
It takes about 60 minutes for the observing station to complete a mosaic. However, you can stop the process at any time if you are satisfied with the current image. You can then save it or export it as is.
Please note, however, that it is not possible to resume a mosaic that you have interrupted. You will have to start the acquisition from the beginning. Similarly, if during the course of a mosaic you ask to refocus, the capture will be interrupted and will be restarted (automatically) from the beginning.
Examples of defining the mosaic framework in Singularity for different regions of the sky: (1) Lagoon Nebula and Trifid (2) Markarian Chain
Saving and exporting mosaic images
You can save and export an image of the mosaic at any time, as you normally would with a conventional observation. The result of the mosaic can be obtained in JPEG format or in raw TIFF format if you wish to perform manual image processing.
If you have activated the saving of the files on a USB stick on Stellina or in the internal memory of Vespera, you will find all the JPEGs of each step of the mosaic as well as the raw file in TIFF format of the last state before the interruption of the observation. You can also save all the raw unit images in FITS format that were used to stack and to compose the mosaic. Please note, however, that in order to use the raw FITS images, you will have to manually perform the mosaic assembly and stacking with a specialized application.
The raw image file in TIFF format represents the assembled mosaic (with the stacking done by the observation station) and can be directly exploited in any image processing software.
The region of the Great Orion Nebula, captured by Vespera with an integration time of 2h30 and processed with Affinity Photo and Starnet applications ++ (image : Sébastien Aubry – @adventurerofthethirplanet )
