Young Moon
The young moon setting on the evening of April 20, 2015. The image is a 100 percent crop of a photo shot at 189 mm.
Trifid Nebula
My first attempt at the Trifid Nebula (or M20), a prominent object in the constellation Sagittarius. This nebula is a rare combination of three nebulae types: an emission nebula (the lower, red portion), a reflection nebula (the upper, blue portion) and a dark nebula (the 'gaps' within the emission nebula that cause the specific appearance and give it its name). The image is a single shot (106 sec. at ISO
Scorpius rising
Scorpius rising in all its glory. The bright "star" on the far left is actually not a star, but the ring planet Saturn. The prominent reddish star is Antares, also known as the Heart of the Scorpion. The red dot in the left hand corner is the signal of a local cellular tower.
Night sky action
My analog Hasselblad performing under the starry skies of Chile.It's new moon and the observatory is buzzing.
Multi-day horseback riding tour
Here are some images from the first multi-day horseback riding trip that I accompanied as a guide. Trying to take pictures while the horse was walking was a bit of a challenge
Lunar Eclipse
A total lunar eclipse happened today, April 4, 2015, shortly before sunrise. The total phase lasted less than five minutes, making it the shortest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century. Well, for me it was even shorter. Due to the high mountain ranges surrounding the Hacienda, I only got a glimpse of the beginning total phase before the moon disappeared behind a mountain.
Severe weather
On March 24th the northern part of Chile was hit by intense rains and thunderstorms that lead to heavy mudflows. Our area was affected as well, but we were lucky. Our Internet and cell phone coverage was lost for a week, but we had water and electricity, and the main road remained accessible most of the time.
A visit to Tololo
A wonderful visit to Cerro Tololo together with Friedhelm and Horia, two astro-photographers from Germany. The site was quite spectacular, as was the road leading to it (approx. 80 km, 72 of which were unpaved and at times very rough). And, in case you are wondering - yes, I drove.
Omega Centauri
An image of Omega Centauri, the largest - and in my view also the most beautiful - globular cluster in the Milky Way. Omega Centauri has a diameter of 150 light years, and contains some 10 million stars (haven't counted them yet
The Eta Carinae Nebula
My first try at a deep sky object, the Eta Carinae Nebula, a large and bright emission nebula located in the constellation Carina. The image was shot at 1600 mm, f/8, using an 8" refractor telescope as lens.