The Herschel 400 Astronomical League Project is underway
It’s not too late to join. We are about 30 objects into the Herschel 400. Hope to get another session in soon. Please subscribe to the YouTube channel so you get notifications on LIVE STREAMS.
Angels in Monoceros: The Monoceros M2 Complex
The Monoceros R2 molecular complex (often shortened to Mon R2) is a massive giant molecular cloud and one of the nearest active star-forming regions to Earth. It's a dynamic stellar nursery embedded in dense gas and dust, where new stars—particularly massive ones—are actively being born.
Key Facts
Location: Southwestern part of the constellation Monoceros (the Unicorn), near the border with Orion. It's part of the larger Orion-Monoceros cloud complex.
Distance: Approximately 2,400–2,700 light-years (around 830 parsecs).
Size and Structure: The main dense core is relatively compact (a few light-years across), but the overall molecular cloud and associated nebulae span a wide area—reflection nebulae alone stretch up to about 2° in the sky. It's situated well below the galactic plane, which makes it stand out in certain observations.
Age and Activity: Star formation here began roughly 6–10 million years ago. It hosts an OB association (young, hot, massive B- and A-type stars) that illuminates surrounding dust, creating prominent reflection nebulae with bluish hues. There's also significant emission from ionized gas (red glows) and dark nebulae that appear as shadowy silhouettes blocking background light.
Notable Features:
A central hub of massive star formation with embedded clusters, molecular outflows, and HII regions.
Infrared observations (like those from VISTA or 2MASS) penetrate the dust to reveal hidden young stars and protoplanetary disks.
It's a key site for studying early stellar evolution, variability in young stellar objects (YSOs), and the interplay between massive stars and their natal clouds.
The most famous and photogenic part of Mon R2 is the region around NGC 2170 (the Angel Nebula), a striking reflection nebula with wing-like dust structures, glowing blue from scattered starlight, mixed with red emission and dark lanes. Wider views of the complex reveal a richer tapestry of colorful gas, dust filaments, and star clusters.
Credit: GROK 2/28/26
Click on image for larger view.
New Astro Camera: OM-3
Join me for a LIVE conversation about this new astro camera coming to the market. Is this the best option for you? How does it compare to other options? https://www.earthandskyphoto.com Correction: when discussing Bulb mode with Canon, I incorrectly said it had a limit of 30”. I meant to say manual exposure has a max of 30”. In bulb, you need to use a remote control or app for exposure time control. The problem is you can’t set exposure time for stills in the camera menu. I was made aware that Olympus no longer owns the OM system. It is owned by Japanese industrial Partners, a private equity firm. For content on the OM-3 for astrophotography, please see Ben Chapell’s Narrow Band channel. https://youtube.com/@TheNarrowbandChannel?si=GcWY-BM9skG9LPhY
Fine Art Booth Display at Myrtle Beach
Had a wonderful time at the Craftsman Classic Show in Myrtle Beach and continued to vacation with the family afterwards. It was hot as you might guess and what a wonderful time to have an indoor show! Met many wonderful people and had some great discussions about art and photography as well as the cosmos.
One customer made the comment that I didn't expect but was overjoyed when they said that "I see God in your photographs." That really said it all and made my show.
I met many new customers, signed several folks up for the email newsletter, and had a registration for the Water workshop next May.
For those who didn't make it to the show, I have posted a video where I walk through the booth and give you a brief glimpse of what the presentation looked like.
The next show is in Pittsburgh the last weekend in August. For more information please see the "Purchase-Art Show" page in the menu above.
Autumn in Smoky Mountains National Park
Autumn in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park from Jeff Ball on Vimeo.
This is a first video experiment with the Canon 5DMKII while on a landscape photography visit to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in October 2009. Capturing and constructing this video has served as a wonderful educational endeavor. I mistakenly recorded the first two video clips in SD and are not quite the quality they should be, but the other clips look wonderful on the large screen. I am also learning video editing through Adobe Premiere Elements 8.0. It crashes frequently on my PC so I am either in need of equipment upgrades or I need to get the Adobe Creative Suite with Premiere or both. I hope you enjoy the video and please contact me with any comments or questions.
NEAF 2010
An overview of the world's largest astronomical trade show. The North East Astronomy Forum was held April 17-18, 2010 in Suffern, NY. Jeff highlights the gear that caught his eye during the exhibit. You can view a larger presentation of the video at YouTube.
Trouble with YouTube, try the Vimeo file.
NEAF 2010 by Jeff Ball from Jeff Ball on Vimeo.
ATIK Camera's Warren Keller discusses CCD offerings
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1WwhUTMD1EWarren Keller of ATIK camera from Jeff Ball on Vimeo.
U.S. representative Warren Keller discusses ATIK CCD cameras now available in the U.S.
You can find ATIK USA at the link below
http://www.atik-usa.com/
A very special THANKS to Tom Kennedy for technical assistance on video production.
Al Nagler discusses his astrophotography endeavors
Al Nagler discusses his astrophotography endeavors from Jeff Ball on Vimeo.
Noted telescope designer Al Nagler discusses his early efforts at astrophotography and current telescope designs aimed at improving imaging performance of his telescopes. A wonderful few minutes spent with one of the industry's icons and a terrific ambassador for the amateur astronomy community. I am sure you will enjoy the discussion and learn a thing or two.
This video is part of a project I am putting together, but felt that Mr. Nagler's presentation stood on its own from an entertainment and information point of view.
I have had an opportunity to image with Televue instruments over the years including the TV85 and TV101. These instruments are capable of taking wonderful astrophotos. The TV101 and TV127 IS systems are particularly noted for their astrophotographic performance. I encourage you to consider Televue for your astrophotography needs, not to mention those unbelievable eyepieces for the visual astronomer!
A very special THANK YOU to Tom Kennedy for his technical assistance on video production!!
Thanks and clear skies.
Jeff's Blog
Join me on photography journeys from desert landscapes to deep sky wonders.
