Mars Approach in Autumn 2020

Mars at its closest approach to Earth for another 15 years, on October 5, 2020, with autumn aspens. Taken from home with the waning Moon off camera providing the illumination. This is a stack of 8 median-combined images for the ground to smooth noise and one exposure for the sky. All 15 seconds at ISO 2500 and f/4 with the Sigma 24mm Art lens and Nikon D750. SharpenAI applied to the ground; DeNoiseAI applied to the sky. Diffraction spikes on Mars added with Astronomy Tools Actions. A mild Orton Glow effect added with Luminar 4.

Harvest Moonrise over Country Road

The Harvest Moon (the Full Moon of October 1, 2020) rising almost due east at the end of a country road in southern Alberta, near home. The horizon was smoky or dusty, so the Moon was very red as it rose, and looking almost like a totally eclipsed Moon. This is a blend of 6 exposures, all 1/2-second with the A&M 80mm f/6 apo refractor (for 480mm focal length) and Canon 6D MkII at ISO 400, taken as part of a 460-frame time-lapse sequence, with shots every 2 seconds. For this composite I choose 6 images at 2-minute intervals, so the Moon rose its own diameter between frames. The ground comes from the first image in the sequence when the lighting was brightest. The Moon rose at 7:35 pm this night, about 30 minutes after sunset. A mild Orton glow effect added to the ground with Luminar 4.

Winter Stars Rising at Dawn in August

The stars of the northern winter sky rising at dawn on the morning of August 14, 2020, from home in southern Alberta. The waning crescent Moon is overexposed here, shining above bright Venus , then in southern Gemini as a bright “morning star” in the east. Mars is also bright and reddish, to the south at upper right. Orion is rising over the ripening wheatfield at centre. Above Orion is Taurus with the Hyades and Pleiades star clusters. The bright star to the left and above the Moon is Capella in Auriga. Castor and Pollux are rising at far left. This is a stack of 4 images for the ground to smooth noise and 1 image for the sky, all with the 14mm Sigma Art lens at f/2.5 and Nikon D750 at ISO 800 for 25 seconds each. I added a mild Orton Glow effect with Luminar Flex.

Comet NEOWISE at Columbia Icefields (July 27, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) on July 27, 2020 from the Columbia Icefields (Jasper National Park, Alberta) from the Toe of the Glacier parking lot, looking north over Sunwapta Lake, formed by the summer meltwater of Athabasca Glacier. So this is a portrait of ice in the sky and icy water on Earth. This was my parting shot of the comet, as it was fading rapidly at this time receding from Earth, though it was still naked eye. Plus the waxing Moon was going to be lighting the sky much more in the following week. So this was the night! While it was pale to the eye, the long expposure of the camera did pick up the blue ion and white dust tails very well. The ion tail extends about 15° and the dust tail at least 10°. The tails are certainly more prominent than in 99% of any comets we see any given year! So this was still a nice comet! Red and green bands of airglow, some faint magenta aurora on the horizon, and some lingering blue perpetual twilight at his northern latitude all tint the sky. The Big Dipper stars are at top. Arcturus is at far left. The orange star at bottom is Tania Australis, here made a little larger by it shining through some thin haze. This is an exposure blend of a stack of 4 x 4-minute untracked exposures for the ground, with 4 x 2-minute tracked and stacked exposures for the sky. Stacking the images smooths noise. Tracking the sky prevents star trailing in the long exposures required to reveal the faintest stars and the subtle comet tails. The camera was on the iOptron SkyGuider Pro tracker. For the ground shots I simply turned the tracker motor off. All with the 24mm Sigma Art lens at f/2.8 and Canon EOS Ra at ISO 1600 for the ground and ISO 3200 for the sky. Topaz Sharpen AI applied to the ground; Topaz DeNoise AI applied to the sky. In camera LENR employed on all shots on this warm night. The foreground is lit in part by lights from the Icefields Centre buildings off camera to the right.

Milky Way over Mount Andromeda at Moonset

The Milky Way and galactic core area over Mount Andromeda (centre), Mount Athabasca (left) and the Athabasca Glacier (right) at the Columbia Icefields, on a very clear night July 27, 2020. I shot this as the waxing quarter Moon was still up but behind Snow Dome at far right, and about to set. Warm low-angle moonlight illuminates the peaks at left with “bronze hour” lunar alpen glow, and brightens the sky at right, plus adds the blue tint to the sky. But in the clear mountain air, the Milky Way and its starclouds still show up very well. The constellations of Aquila and Scutum are at centre. This is an exposure blend of 4 x 1.5-minutes, untracked at f/2 at ISO 1600 for the ground, followed immediately by 3 x 1.5-minutes at f/2.8 and ISO 3200 for the sky, with the sky exposures tracked on the iOptron SkyGuider Pro tracker. All with the 20mm Sigma Art lens and Canon EOS Ra, with the lens adapted to the camera with a Metabones adapter.

Comet over the Columbia Icefields at Moonset

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) on July 27, 2020, at right, over the Columbia Icefields with the Moon still lighting the peaks in a warm “bronze hour” light for a lunar alpenglow. The Moon is behind Snowdome Peak at centre and is also still lighting the sky a deep blue. The Milky Way is at left over Mount Andromeda. Arcturus is the bright star at top centre. This was more or less my parting shot of the comet, as it was fading rapidly at this time receding from Earth, though it was still naked eye. Plus the waxing Moon was going to be lighting the sky much more in the following week. So this was the night! Shooting a week earlier when the comet was brighter and larger would have been nice, but clouds would have got in the way. This was shot during a run of unusually clear nights at the Icefields, the first good clear nights according to the locals. I shot this during the brief “bronze hour” interval immediately after the Moon had disappeared behind Snowdome but was still lighting the peaks. So to be clear — the peaks are lit by the setting Moon, not by the Sun. This is not a composite of day and night shots; it is a well-timed and planned panorama shot as quickly as possible over a few minutes before the lighting changed. Lingering twilight lights the horizon down the Sunwapta Valley at right. The famous Athabasca Glacier is just left of centre; Snowdome Glacier is right of centre, with the glacial Sunwapta Lake in the foreground. Mount Athabasca is at far left with its glacier. This is a 17-segment (!) panorama with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.5 and Canon EOS Ra camera at ISO 1600, for 20 seconds each, untracked. The overlap was more than is normally needed but the segments stitched perfectly with Adobe Camera Raw, which is not always the case with such scenes. LENR employed on all segments when shooting on this warm night. Dodging and burning applied to accentuate highlights and shadows. Topaz Sharpen AI applied. The original is over 27,000 pixels wide.

Planets and Milky Way Over Saskatchewan River Crossing

Jupiter (brightest), Saturn (to the left), and the Milky Way over the Saskatchewan River and the area of Howse Pass, on July 26, 2020. Mount Cephren is at left; the scene is framed to include Cephren. The nebulas and star clouds of the galactic centre area at right show up well on this very clear night. The bright Small Sagittarius Starcloud, aka M24, is most obvious, flanked by the star clusters M23 and M25 to the side, and the nebulas M17 and M16 above, and M8 and M20 below. The fuzzy globular cluster M22 is to the left of the large Lagoon Nebula, M8. Green airglow tints the sky. This is an exposure blend of a stack of 4 x 2-minute untracked exposures for the ground at ISO 1600 (exposed long to bring out ground details), with 2 x 1-minute tracked and stacked exposures at ISO 3200 for the sky. Shot from the Howse Pass Viewpoint area off the Icefields Parkway at Saskatchewan River Crossing. The camera was on the iOptron SkyGuider Pro tracker. For the ground shots I simply turned the tracker motor off. All with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.8 and Canon EOS Ra, a filter-modified camera. Topaz Sharpen AI applied to the ground; Topaz DeNoise AI applied to the sky. In camera LENR employed on all shots on this warm night. An Orton soft glow effect added to the sky with Luminar Flex plug-in.

Comet NEOWISE and Ursa Major Over Mount Wilson (July 26, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) on July 26, 2020 from Saskatchewan River Crossing in Banff National Park, Alberta. The comet is just about to set behind Mount Wilson, the iconic peak in the area. A meteor appears at top in the image framed to include the Big Dipper and the constellation of Ursa Major. While the comet was fading, its blue ion and white dust tails still show up well. It was from near here that scientist and explorer James Hector, member of the 1858-59 Palliser Expediton, observed Comet Donati on September 10, 1858 as they made their way up the valleys of the Bow, Mistaya, Howse and Saskatchewan Rivers, as part of a British scientific expedition to map the area and much of southern Alberta. This is an exposure blend of a stack of 4 x 2-minute untracked exposures for the ground at ISO 800 (exposed long to bring out ground details), with 3 x 30-second tracked and stacked exposures at ISO 1600 for the sky. I shot short exposures for the sky to catch the comet before it set. The meteor was on one frame of the sky stack layered and blended in separately. The camera was on the iOptron SkyGuider Pro tracker. For the ground shots I simply turned the tracker motor off. All with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.8 and Canon EOS Ra. Topaz Sharpen AI applied to the ground. In camera LENR employed on all shots on this warm night. Shot from the parking lot of the Howse Pass Viewpoint area off the Icefields Parkway.

Comet NEOWISE at Saskatchewan River Crosssing (July 26, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) on July 26, 2020 from the area of Saskatchewan River Crossing in Banff National Park, Alberta. It was from near here that scientist and explorer James Hector, member of the 1858-59 Palliser Expediton, observed Comet Donati on September 10, 1858 as they made their way up the valleys of the Bow, Mistaya, Howse and Saskatchewan Rivers, as part of a British scientific expedition to map the area and much of southern Alberta. Mount Wilson at right is lit in part by the setting Moon out of sight behind the foreground hill and by lingering summer twilight lighting the horizon over the Saskatchewan River valley at centre. This is an exposure blend of a stack of 4 x 2-minute untracked exposures for the ground at ISO 200, with 3 x 1-minute tracked and stacked exposures at ISO 400 for the sky. Stacking the images smooths noise. Tracking the sky prevents star trailing in the long exposures needed to reveal lots of stars and the fading comet well. The camera was on the iOptron SkyGuider Pro tracker. For the ground shots I simply turned the tracker motor off. All with the 35mm Canon Art lens at f/2.8 and Canon EOS Ra. Topaz Sharpen AI applied to the ground. In camera LENR employed on all shots on this warm night.

Comet NEOWISE and Big Dipper Over Badlands (July 22, 2020)

Another incredible sky this night! This is Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the badlands formations at Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta on July 22-23, 2020, with the Big Dipper above. A very active thunderstorm system moving northeastward this night but well to the west of me lights the horizon. Parallel bands of red and green airglow tint the sky, as does the blue of lingering summer twilight. Even with the bright sky the comet’s blue ion tail can be traced up to and past the Bowl of the Big Dipper. This is an exposure blend, with the landscape from a stack of seven exposures from 2.5 to 3.5 minutes long at f/2.8 and ISO 1600, stacked to smooth noise, blended with a single untracked 30-second exposure for the sky at ISO 6400 at f/2, all with the Sigma 24mm lens and Canon EOS Ra camera. The ground is illuminated by starlight and sky light only; no light painting was used here. Topaz DeNoise AI applied to the sky; Sharpen AI applied to the ground. Some light sculpting applied to the ground with a Dodge and Burn layer and a luminosity mask, to make the foreground less flat in lighting.

Comet NEOWISE Reflection (July 20, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) reflected in the still waters this night of Crawling Lake in southern Alberta. A dim aurora at right colours the sky magenta. Lingering twilight colours the sky blue. A meteor or more likely a flaring satellite appears at right and is also reflected in the water. Even in this short exposure, the two tails — dust and ion — are visible. This was July 20, 2020. The main image content is a single untracked exposure of 25 seconds at f/2.8 and ISO 3200 with the 35mm Canon lens and Canon 6D MkII. The distant clouds, horizon, and water in the distance and in the immediate foreground without stars is from an average stack of 7 exposures, all at the above settings, to smooth noise. I shot this from Crawling Lake in southern Alberta on a near perfect night, though distant clouds are lit by yellow light pollution.

Comet NEOWISE and Big Dipper (July 20, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the still waters this night of Crawling Lake in southern Alberta. The Big Dipper is at top. Even in this short exposure, the two tails — dust and ion — are visible. This was July 20, 2020. The blue ion tail is extending up into the Bowl of the Big Dipper, for some 20° in length. Very impressive! The main image content is a single untracked exposure of 20 seconds at f/2.2 and ISO 3200 with the 35mm Canon lens and Canon 6D MkII. The distant clouds, horizon, and water in the distance and in the immedate foregound without stars is from an average stack of 6 exposures, all at the above settings, to smooth noise. I shot this from Crawling Lake in southern Alberta on a near perfect night, though distant clouds are lit by yellow light pollution.

Comet NEOWISE in Twilight over Lake (July 20, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the still waters this night of Crawling Lake in southern Alberta. This was early in the evening with the sky still brightly coloured with twilight. The comet was in the southern part of Ursa Major between the pairs of stars called Tania and Talitha. The clouds that were present nicely framed the scene and reflected in the water as well. The comet was too high to be visible as a reflection at this time. The main image content is a single untracked exposure of 20 seconds at f/2.8 and ISO 640 with the 35mm Canon lens and Canon 6D MkII. The distant clouds, horizon, and water in the distance and in the immedate foregound without stars is from an average stack of 6 exposures, all at the above settings, to smooth noise. I shot this from Crawling Lake in southern Alberta on a near perfect night.

Comet NEOWISE Over Dinosaur Park (July 15, 2020)

This is Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the badlands and formations of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, on the night of July 14-15, 2020, at about 12:30 am local time with it nearly due north and as low as it got for the night at this latitude of 51° N. A green and magenta aurora colours the northern sky also blue with perpetual summer twilight. Capella is at far right. The comet’s dim blue ion tail is visible here extending some 18° to the top of the frame; the whitish curving dust tail extends about 12° though it becomes lost in the sky still bright with twilight and the aurora this night. This is a classic comet! Very much the dimmer twin of Comet Hale-Bopp from April 1997. This is a blend of 6 exposures for the ground stacked to smooth noise, with a single exposure for the sky, with the 35mm Canon lens and Canon 6D MkII. The ground exposures are 1- and 2-minutes at ISO 1600 and f/2.8, while the single untracked sky exposure was 20 seconds at ISO 3200 and f/2.5. There was no Moon, thus the need to take very long exposures for the ground to reveal details in the landscape here illuminated by just starlight and the faint aurora that was to the north and that was barely visible to the eye. Otherwise the ground would have been a featureless silhouette. So, yes, this image shows much more than the eye could see unaided due to the long exposures, but that’s the point and attraction of astrophotography — to record celestial objects and scenes with more detail than the eye can see. Indeed, any exposure longer than a second is bound to show more than the eye can detect. However, in binoculars the ion tail was barely visible, helped by knowing it was there. But the dust tail could be see to this extent, but in binoculars! However, the comet was still a fine sight naked eye, with an obvious tail about 5° to 6° long to the eye, despite the bright midnight sky. LENR employed in camera on all shots this warm night to remove thermal speckling and colour casts the 6D MkII is prone to. Stacked and masked with Photoshop. Topaz DeNoise AI applied to the sky; Topaz Sharpen applied to the ground, plus a mild touch of ON1 Photo RAW Dynamic Contrast.

Panorama of Comet NEOWISE Over Prince of Wales Hotel (July 14, 2020)

A once-in-a-lifetime scene — A panorama of the dawn sky at 4 am on July 14, 2020 from Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, Canada with Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the iconic Prince of Wales Hotel. Noctilucent clouds glow below the comet in the dawn twilight. Venus is rising right of centre paired with Aldebaran and the Hyades star cluster, while the Pleiades cluster shine above. The waning quarter Moon shines above the Vimy Peak at far right. The Big Dipper is partly visible above the mountain at far left. Capella and the stars of Auriga are at centre. This is an 8-segment panorama with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.5 for 15 seconds each at ISO 100 with the Canon 6D MkII and stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.

Comet NEOWISE and NLCs over Prince of Wales Hotel (July 14, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) with a small display of noctilucent clouds over Emerald Bay and the iconic Prince of Wales Hotel at Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, at dawn on July 14, 2020. This was from the new International Peace Park viewpoint near the marina. Capella is at upper right. This is a blend of a stack of four exposures for the ground and water to smooth noise, blended with a single short exposure for the sky, all 20 seconds at f/2.5 and ISO 400, plus an additional short 8 second exposure at ISO 100 blended in with a luminosity mask to reduce the intensity of just the hotel lights and prevent them from overexposing too much. All with the 35mm Canon lens and Canon 6D MkII camera. LENR employed on all shots to reduce thermal noise this warm summer night.

Milky Way and Planets over Waterton Lakes (July 2020)

The galactic core area of the Milky Way over Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta with the pairing of giant planets from summer 2020. Jupiter is the bright object at centre, with Saturn dimmer to the left (east) of Jupiter. In 2020 the two planets were close together in the summer sky. Sagittarius is at right. The Prince of Wales Hotel is the bright light source. This was July 13-14, 2020. This is a stack of 10 exposures for the ground, mean combined to smooth noise in the dark foreground, with the sky from one exposure, all untracked for 25 seconds at f/2 with the Sigma 20mm lens on the Canon EOS Ra camera at ISO 3200. A single short exposure is blended in for just the hotel lights to prevent them from being too overexposed. Stacked, masked and blended in Photoshop.

Comet NEOWISE and STEVE Aurora over Waterton River (July 14, 2020)

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) with the Northern Lights and a STEVE arc aurora to the left, all over the Waterton River at Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, on July 13-14, 2020. This was from the Maskinonge picnic area. The Big Dipper is at upper left. A very faint green picket fence aurora is at right above the comet, a characteristic of STEVE arcs. This was an astounding night for sky phenomena! This is a blend of a stack of six exposures for the ground and water to smooth noise, blended with a single short exposure for the sky, all 15 seconds at f/2 and ISO 3200, with the 20mm Sigma Art lens and Canon EOS Ra camera (with the Nikon-mount Sigma lens adapted to the EOS Ra with a Metabones F to RF adapter). LENR employed on all shots to reduce thermal noise this warm summer night.

Milky Way over Maskinonge Pond

The galactic core area of the Milky Way over Maskinonge Pond in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta. Jupiter is the bright object at left, with Saturn dimmer to the left (east) of Jupiter. In the summer of 2020 the two planets were close together in the summer sky. Jupiter provides the glitter path on the water. Antares and Scorpius are to the right. Sagittarius is at centre. This was July 13-14, 2020. As is typical of Waterton, it was windy enough tonight that there was no sharp reflection of the stars and Milky Way in the water. This is a stack of 12 exposures for the ground, mean combined to smooth noise in the dark foreground, with the sky from one exposure, all untracked for 30 seconds at f/2 with the Sigma 20mm lens on the Canon EOS Ra camera at ISO 3200. Stacked and blended in Photoshop.

Comet NEOWISE and Aurora Panorama (July 13, 2020)

Another amazing sky scene — A panorama of the late night sky just before midnight on July 13, 2020 from Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, Canada with Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the front range of the Rocky Mountains and an arc of aurora across the north. Earlier, noctilucent clouds were also visible. Quite the show! This was taken from the Bison Compound access road. This is an 6-segment panorama with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.2 for 25 seconds each at ISO 800 with the Canon 6D MkII and stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.

Comet NEOWISE over Red Deer River

Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the Red Deer River from Orkney Viewpoint north of Drumheller, Alberta, on the morning of July 11, 2020. The sky is brightening with dawn twilight and a small display of noctilucent clouds is on the horizon at right. The constellation of Auriga with the bright star Capella is at right. This is looking north toward the Bleriot Ferry terminal. Light from the waning gibbous Moon provides the illumination, plus twilight. Some ground fog lies in the valley below. This is a two-segment vertical panorama with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.8 and Canon 6D MkII at ISO 200 for 13 seconds each. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw with Perspective geometry.

Comet NEOWISE over Red Deer River Panorama (July 11, 2020)

What a magical scene this was! This is Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the sweep of the Red Deer River and Badlands from Orkney Viewpoint north of Drumheller, Alberta, on the morning of July 11, 2020. The sky is brightening with dawn twilight and a small display of noctilucent clouds is on the horizon right of centre. Venus and and Pleiades are rising at right. Venus was close to the star Aldebaran and in the Hyades star cluster, both just visible right on the horizon. This is looking north toward the Bleriot Ferry terminal. Light from the waning gibbous Moon provides the illumination, plus twilight. This nicely shows the arch of the twilight colours. This is a 6-segment panorama with the 50mm Sigma lens at f/2.8 and Canon 6D MkII at ISO 400 for 13 seconds each. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. Topaz DeNoise AI and Sharpen AI applied.

Comet NEOWISE over Horseshoe Canyon (July 11, 2020)

This is Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the Horseshoe Canyon formation near Drumheller, Alberta on the night iof July 10-11, 2020, taken about 2 a.m. MDT with the comet just past lower culmination with it circumpolar at this time. Warm light from the rising waning gibbous Moon provides the illumination. The comet’s faint blue ion tail is just barely visible even in the moonlit sky and low altitude. The glow of summer perpetual twilight at latitude 51.5° N still colours the northern horizon despite this being close to the middle of the night. This is a blend of six 1- and 2-minute exposures for the ground at ISO 800 and 400 stacked to smooth noise, with a single 30-second exposure at ISO 1600 for the sky, all with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.8 and Canon 6D MkII, with LENR employed on this warm night. Stacked and masked with Photoshop. Topaz DeNoise AI applied to the sky; Topaz Sharpen AI applied to the ground. Construction barriers prevented access to the trail down, which might have made a better image with a cleaner horizon.

Moonrise with Jupiter and Saturn (July 6, 2020)

The waning Moon just rising into the late evening sky with Jupiter (brightest at right) and Saturn (to the left of Jupiter) together in the southeast sky on July 6, 2020. Over the small pond at my rural home in Alberta. This is a stack of 4 exposures for the ground to smooth noise and one exposure for the sky, all 13 seconds at f/2.2 with the 50mm Sigma lens and Canon 6D MkII at ISO 400.