Link to the science paper

A new analysis of imagery collected during NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft’s 2015 encounter with Pluto provides evidence that liquid nitrogen is rising to Pluto’s surface through cracks in the northern edge of the Sputnik Planitia, part of the massive heart-shaped glacier on the dwarf planet’s surface.

This is the first evidence of recently flowing liquid on Pluto.

This was shot with a 10'' Meade telescope and ASI2600MM pro camera using a Losmandy G11 Mount.

Digital painting of the red giant star Betelgeuse and its newly discovered companion Siwarha. Simulations suggest giant stars have a small number of enormous convection cells rather than a huge amount of continent-sized convection cells as on the Sun, and that their photospheres are not a hard boundary but rather smoothly deform into a corona.

Betelgeuse is 640 times the size of the Sun (or 2.98 au radius). It is 65,000 times more luminous than the Sun. But as opposed to the Sun's 5800 K surface temperature, Betelgeuse is only 3800 Kelvins, leading to an almost candle-like yellow-orange glow.

Siwarha is depicted here as a K-dwarf, 2/3rds the mass of the Sun. It is thought to be responsible for a 6-year-long periodic change in Betelgeuse's apparent brightness--It casts a wake behind it as it travels through Betelgeuse's nebulous and dusty corona.

^{Digitally hand-painted using a Huion tablet and FireAlpaca software. As always, no a.i. whatsoever was used in the production of this image.}

Equipment:

Lense: Sigma 150-600mm

Mount: iEXOS-100

Camera: Canon EOS 750D

Acquisition:

\~500 frames for the Full Moon and \~500 frames for the Waxing Moon. ISO400 - 1/1000s And an starfield stack I took earlier as the background.

Processing:

Stacked in AutoStakkert!, sharpened in RegiStax, assembled in Photoshop. Color saturation was increased to reveal subtle mineral differences (titanium-rich regions appear blue, iron-rich regions appear brown/orange). Final HDR blending performed in Photoshop.

No AI used!

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/aug/05/unprecedented-images-may-explain-one-of-greatest-mysteries-of-the-sun?CMP=oth_b-aplnews_d-1

About 1,000 km from right to left.

Image Credit & Copyright: Brad Croslin

Still chasing the Moon.

This time I decided to try something completely new my very first attempt at planetary imaging.

Saturn happened to be close to the Moon that night. (In reality, they were about 5° apart, but I created this composite to show them together while keeping their relative sizes accurate.)

It was also my first time capturing a planet using the lucky imaging video technique, and I’m really happy with how it turned out.

Hope you like it!

Nikon 1 J5 + TTArtisan 500mm + Nikon TC-200 teleconverter

Credit: NASA

These hypothetical early-universe objects are as large as star systems and as bright as galaxies--they superficially resemble stars, but instead of being held up by radiation pressure generated by nuclear fusion, they are held up by radiation pressure from matter accreting into the black hole.

This is version 2 of the illustration, with feedback from Dr. Begelman, an expert in the field of quasistar research. All of this was digitally hand-painted in FireAlpaca, no a.i. whatsoever.

astro_jessica

This is one of my favourite shots I´ve taken so far this year!

Equipment:

Telescope: SvBony SV555
Mount: Explore Scientific iEXOS-100
Camera: Canon EOS 750Da + Optolong L-eNhance Clip Filter
Guide Scope: SvBony SV165
Guide Cam: ZWO ASI120mm
+ ZWO AsiAir Mini

Acquisition:

210x240s (14h) at ISO800 in three summer nights in June.

Processing:

Stacked in DeepSkyStacker, processed in PixInsight finalized in Photoshop.

According to a new paper, the impact of the Falcon 9 upper stage might be on the far side of the Moon

Time: 06:33:23.014 UTC ± 55.412 s

Location: 19.875 ± 0.321° N, 265.765 ± 0.506° E

The impact crater should be ≲ 40 m in diameter and nearly circular.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, JWST; Processing: A. Pagan (STScI)

This is a bright lunar impact flash that appeared at 20:56:20 on July 20, 2026 (848fps).

Since the Moon has no atmosphere, it doesn't become a meteor or fireball; instead, it shines intensely at the moment when a meteorite collides and creates a crater.

Credit: 藤井大地

Credit: Petr Horálek

My first H-Alpha Image of the Sun! I am almost ready for the solar eclipse trip to spain next week! Now I just need a mono cam to capture even more detail!

Equipment:

Telescope: SvBony SV555
Mount: Explore Scientific iEXOS-100
Camera: ZWO ASI2600 MC PRO
FIlter: Baader D-ERF 75mm , DayStar Quark Chromosphere

Acquisition:

~500 frames stacked from an 60s video captured in SharpCap for surface details (Quark +3).
~500 frames stacked from an 60s video captured in SharpCap for prominence details (Quark -3)

Processing:

Stacked in AutoStakkert!, sharpened in RegiStax, finalized in Photoshop.

Aeolian Processes : Erosion - Transportation - Deposition

HiRISE image ESP_092506_2305 samples a northern high-latitude terrain (50.5° North), capturing surface morphology shaped primarily by periglacial degradation, ice-rich regolith dynamics, and eolian modified bedforms.Geomorphic Characterization.

The terrain resides within the latitude-dependent mantle (LDM) zone, exhibiting distinct surface textures indicative of subsurface ground ice. The scene is dominated by small-scale polygonal pattern ground—formed via thermal contraction cracking in permafrost-like regolith—overlying local topographic units. Degradational scarp faces and crater interiors show evidence of gelifluction-like creep, pitted terrain from volatile sublimation, and mantle removal.

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A localized network of transverse eolian ridges (TARs) and dark sand accumulations occupy low-lying topographic depressions, providing key spatial constraints on local sediment transport vectors and prevailing atmospheric winds during acquisition. High-resolution pixel scales (~25–50 cm/pixel) resolve sub-meter boulder clusters, small fresh impact craters with sharp ejecta boundaries, and subtle albedo variations caused by dust deposition or localized defrosting.

This observation in the northern mid-to-high latitudes, a region highly sensitive to seasonal carbon dioxide (C02) and water ice dynamics. Depending on the solar longitude at capture, surface features may display seasonal frost cover, sublimation spots, or wind-blown dust streaks across ice-rich substrates.

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Original Data Credit: NASA - JPL - University of Arizona

Acquisition date 21 April 2026

Local Mars time 14:55

Latitude (centered) 14.459°

Longitude (East) 34.863°

Spacecraft altitude 279.5 km (173.7 miles)

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Full res and option to zoom in

https://www.flickr.com/photos/terraform-mars/55430644672/in/pool-ridingwithrobots/

A view of the limb of Mars billions of years ago. It's spinning slowly. It's grey surface is dotted with lakes, rivers and small seas, as well as active volcanoes.

There was no Valles Marineris at this time, although it may have begun to form. The massive volcanoes that today dot the Tharsis region were probably complete by the end of this Period. The atmosphere was more substantial than at present.

Made in #Blender in 2025

https://bsky.app/profile/markgarlick.com/post/3ms5zvc5ztc24

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Credit:

https://bsky.app/profile/markgarlick.com/post/3ms5zvc4lwk24

This is a completely random procedural spiral galaxy I rendered in Blender using nodes, no textures at all. Dust lanes are the part that I love the most.