Bernhard Schaefer

@bernhardschaefer.bsky.social

Amateur astronomer based in Essen, Germany

Messengers from #space: Invisible particles become visible in this bubble chamber which turns cosmic radiation into tracks you can watch in real time. Thin zigzags are electrons, long straight paths are muons, and thick short trails come from alpha particles losing their energy rapidly. 🔭 #physics

In Cancer lies an old, distant galaxy group - NGC 2563 being the brightest cluster galaxy. The 30-60 cluster members seem mostly lenticular plus some spirals. Distance 200m ly. Galaxy #27 (UGC 4332) is obviously distorted. Some faint galaxies behind cluster seem to be ~1,4bn ly away! 🔭 #astrophoto

A variety of small galaxies visible behind numerous foreground stars. Imaged with Panasonic S5, Skymax 102/1300, 176x30 sec, ISO 640. Processed in SIRIL using the Galaxy Annotations script.Table of all galaxies that can be identified in the original image with the help of the Galaxy Annotations Script in SIRIL. The most distant galaxies in the image (way behind the cluster around NGC 2563) are/were located at a distance of approximately 1.4 billion light-years.

As part of yesterday's "Astronomy Day" in Germany, we did some necessary 😉 spring cleaning at the Walter-Hohmann Observatory. In the evening there were lectures, inter alia about ARTEMIS II, and observations especially of the moon and Jupiter. Thanks to everbody who actively contributed! #astronomy

Part of our outdoor area after sping cleaningThomas Payer giving a lecture about Artemis II and how it compares to the Apollo Program.Public observing the the observatory's C14The moon as it was seen last night. Top left is the "Golden Handle" well visible.

The California Nebula is only 1000 ly away and the closest HII region to us. Because it's so near, the nebula appears quite large in the sky. It is likely illuminated by the nearby star ξ Persei Panasonic S5 mod, TS 70/474, dualband, 93 x 60 s, ISO 640, SIRIL, Starnet, GraXpert, GIMP 🔭 #astrophoto

Red, elongated emission nebula against dark-grey background sky. The nebula's form reminds of the US state California - hence its name.

Wizard and Lion Nebula. North of the image's center is Delta Cephei, the prototype of the Cepheid variables. Its actually a quadruple star - here, two stars of the system can be seen. Panasonic S5 mod, RedCat 51/250, dualband filter, ISO 640, 30x1 min. SIRIL, GraXpert, Starnet, GIMP. 🔭 #astrophoto

A red gas nebula to the top left, which is called the Wizard Nebula. The red-green structure at the bottom right is the Lion Nebula. Dark dust structures visible, too. Several bright stars. The one in the middle of the image is a variable star called Delta Cephei.

Rework: The Eagle Nebula (Messier 16) with the famous Pillars of Creation. Panasonic S5 mod, Skymax 102, GTi, ISO 1000, 10 sec/sub, 75 min total. Siril, Starnet, GraXpert, GIMP The Skymax is not optimal for deep sky imaging (and we had a full moon, by the way), but GraXpert helps. 🙂 🔭 #astrophoto

Reddish nebula in the shape of an eagle coming down on its prey. A star cluster located in its center.

Often overlooked is the Clamshell Nebula (SH2-119), a faint emission nebula located east (left) to the famous North America Nebula (NGC 7000). Panasonic S5, Redcat 51/250, dualband filter, ISO 640, 195 x 1 min. SIRIL, GraXpert, Startnet, GIMP 🔭#astrophoto

The bright North America Nebula fills the right side of the image, together with its smaller companion, the Pelican Nebula. The Clamshell Nebula is found in the left part of the image. Close-up of the Clamshell Nebula, showing inter alia dark dust globules in front of red emission gas structures.

The Pleiades. Longer exposures bring out the faint dust structures through which this young star cluster is currently moving. Close to the bright stars, the gas and dust clouds strongly reflect the blue star light. S5, Redcat 51/250, ISO 640, 2 h. SIRIL, GraXpert, Starnet, GIMP 🔭 #astrophoto

A cluster of bright, blue stars in the center of the image illuminate surrounding gas and dust structures which in effect shine blue in the stars' vicinity. Further out, the dust is visible as grey-brown clouds against the background sky.

My favorite 2025 image: IC 1396 in Cepheus with the famous Elephant's Trunk Nebula to the right of its center, a stellar nursery, its very young stars being visible only in infrared. Panasonic S5, Redcat 51/250, dualband filter, 60 min, ISO 640. SIRIL, Graxpert, Starnet, GIMP. 🔭 #astrophoto

Almost round reddish nebula with numerous dark dust cloud structures inside. To the right of the nebula's center, a particular long dust cloud is visible that is being eroded away by the central hot star.

The beautiful Milky Way around Sadr, the supergiant in the center of Cygnus. Adjacent to Sadr is the Butterfly Nebula (IC 1318), an emission nebula with intense dark dust lanes in front of it. At the bottom, the small Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888), which surrounds a Wolf-Rayet star. 🔭 #astrophoto

A vast reddish nebula structure, littered with myriads of stars. At the bottom, a small crescent-shaped nebula.

Another example of a gas cloud that is both ionized and at the same time dissolved by intense stellar winds. Here, it is the star Gamma Cassiopeia that shapes the nebula IC 63, also known as the 'Ghost of Cassiopeia'. Newton 300/1350, Panasonic S5 mod, 30 min Ha/OIII, ISO 800. 🔭 #astrophoto

A bright star at the top left and a reddish gas cloud below, the latter obviously being eroded away by the stars stellar wind.

The result of yesterday's cloudless night: The emission nebula NGC 6820 with star cluster NGC 6823. The hot, young stars of the cluster erode the surrounding gas and dust. Newtonian 300/1350, Panasonic S5 mod, 65x30s RGB + 130x30s Ha/OIII, ISO 800.

In the center of the image is a cluster of bright stars surrounded by reddish gas clouds and dark dust clouds, both being shaped by the intense winds that are emitted by the stars.

Trifid Nebula (M20), imaged 2 nights ago before it hid behind the rooftops. The red part is an emission nebula, ie hydrogen ionized by the central star cluster - while the blue part is a reflection nebula Panasonic S5 mod, Skymax102/1300, 30 min, ISO 800, Siril/Starnet/Graxpert/Gimp 🔭 #astrophoto

A red nebula with distinct dust lanes across and a star system in the center. Above a blueish nebula with a single central star.