Hi all,
Things got a bit busy on a personal level, but regardless the clouds were not that much in my favor either the last few weeks.
However, I had one nice window during which I could finally capture M42, the Orion Nebula, which has been on my todo list for quite some time. I’d love to add more light to it during one of my future sessions, as well as trying Astro filter instead of Duo-band, but nevertheless happy to have the Great Orion Nebula on file!
The **Orion Nebula (M42)** is one of the most breathtaking sights in the night sky and a true showpiece of the winter constellation **Orion**. Located about 1,350 light-years away, this vast stellar nursery is a glowing cloud of hydrogen gas where new stars are actively being born. At its heart lies the Trapezium Cluster, a tight group of young, massive stars whose intense ultraviolet radiation causes the surrounding gas to fluoresce in soft greens, reds, and blues. Spanning roughly 65 light-years across, M42 is part of a much larger molecular cloud complex, a cosmic factory shaping the next generation of suns and possibly planetary systems. Even under suburban skies it reveals delicate wings of nebulosity, while longer exposures uncover intricate filaments and dark dust lanes that look almost like celestial brushstrokes—an ever-changing masterpiece of gravity, radiation, and time.
Earlier this year, we got a super rare opportunity to watch the Aurora Borealis from the Netherlands (Belgium and surrounding countries). I didn’t put the Dwarf 3 out as I was totally unprepared for such happening, but was able to take some pictures with my iPhone. Impressive!
Later this month Dwarflab released a new firmware update for the Dwarf 3 (and Dwarf Mini), allowing us to easily capture star trails! Something I quickly tested out last week. Quite fun and for sure something I’ll add to my captures from time to time in the future too. Here my first try of this new feature, 1 hour of star trail pointing the Dwarf towards Polaris!
To endless exploration, starry nights, and a little bit of cosmic nerdiness!
TTG
