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26 Feb, 4 tweets, 3 min read
Right now there is a 250,000 mile wide arc of plasma that is drifting away from the solar chromosphere. This is a shot I took this afternoon from my backyard. #astrophotography #space #opteam Image
Here is one of my shots of Jupiter for scale. This is called a prominence (not a flare) and is the result of plasma getting caught in the sun's active magnetic field. I'll have this shot (w/o Jupiter) available as a print for 24 hours here: 8x10.co/cosmic_backgro… Image
There's a lot of interesting things on the chromosphere right now. A good sign that we're moving out of the solar minimum and there will be more activity soon. If you want to check out the full rez of this shot, everything is on my patreon in HQ: patreon.com/ajamesmccarthy Image
Here is an timelapse of the prominence. My seeing conditions were fairly poor so it’s not perfect, but you can still watch it dance!

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More from @AJamesMcCarthy

Andrew McCarthy Profile picture
28 Feb
At 2:44am this morning, I positioned myself so the ISS would pass between the moon and I to get this picture. What I didn't expect- was for the ISS to look so much different than usual. #astrophotography #space #opteam Image
Half the solar arrays appear to be missing at first glance. That's because despite being in a configuration requiring them to be face on towards Earth (also the direction of the sun) half of the arrays are seen edge-on. So why Is this happening? Image
As it turns out, this was done in prep for an EVA. So nothing to worry about! And I got a cool, rare picture. Over my favorite crater (Copernicus) no less. Get the signed & numbered print for 24 hours here: 8x10.co/cosmic_backgro… Image
Read 4 tweets
Andrew McCarthy Profile picture
9 Feb
One of the most recognizable constellations in the night sky is Orion. and It is absolutely stunning. But after I spent some time shooting it from dark skies, I learned there is more to it than meets the eye. A short thread. #opteam #astrophotography #space
Our eyes do not perform well in low light, and do not pick up much in the "near infrared" portion of the visible spectrum. My camera, however, can. Look at everything that is revealed after just 18 minutes of shooting.
I annotated this image since it was too much to cover in one tweet. Everything from star forming regions, to supernova shockwaves, and even interstallar dust illuminated by nothing but starlight is visible in this pic. Along with millions of stars.
Read 6 tweets
Andrew McCarthy Profile picture
8 Feb
I spent a few hours the other night with my telescope locked onto the heart of the Orion Nebula. This is the image that came from that session. A vibrant scene of forming stars- so bright you can see it with your naked eye. #astrophotography #space #opteam Image
Here's the full image, since I cropped and rotated to take advantage of twitter's 16x9 previews. This is also available as a print here: 8x10.co/cosmic_backgro… Image
If you are ever interested in learning how the raw data turns into these images, I do make my data available to aspiring astrophotographers via my patreon. This is a challenging hobby but quite rewarding. patreon.com/ajamesmccarthy Image
Read 4 tweets
Andrew McCarthy Profile picture
16 Jan
For the last couple years, I have fully delved into backyard astrophotography from the city. My most common question- what kind of gear is needed if someone wants to learn to take these photos? Here is a full thread on the topic. #astrophotography #space #opteam
I do have a short youtube video walking through the basics of what I use and why, but sometimes its easier just to read a quick summary and check out product/prices, which is why I am doing this. Here's the video if you haven't seen it yet:
When I just want to observe, and not take photos, I use a dobsonian. They offer the largest aperture for your dollar and can show you everything from planets to galaxies. Great place to start. Just don't expect to be able to take pictures. bit.ly/2N3ukMk
Read 17 tweets
Andrew McCarthy Profile picture
15 Oct 20
Yesterday morning I captured an incredibly brief and rare event, the ISS transiting the 4% illuminated moon during the daytime. #astrophotography #space #opteam
Here's the full shot, which was assembled as an HDR mosaic (the ISS was captured with a narrow FOV). Prints available here for 24 hours: 8x10.co/cosmic_backgro…
Here's a video of the pass. I will be doing a full write up on my patreon on how this shot was achieved later today. patreon.com/ajamesmccarthy
Read 6 tweets

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