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AstrogRaffi My hobby as an amateur astrophotography encouraged me to share my work with people.

Pictures of galaxies, nebulae and tutorials of astrophotgraphy will be posted.

13/08/2026

Finally, the eclipse timelapse I’ve been waiting for!

I felt incredibly lucky to be under the 94% eclipse region, even though it wasn’t totality. And honestly, the UK weather couldn’t have been more cooperative — usually, that’s the biggest wildcard!

Chasing an eclipse this year wasn’t an option for me for various reasons, so I decided to make the most of what I had. The last-minute filter purchase was an adventure in itself — getting it delivered on time was a suspense story!

And, of course, because it was a last-minute buy, the filter wasn’t actually meant for my camera. So, a little creativity, some makeshift arrangements, and somehow… we made it work!

Then came the final act: just as the clouds started rolling in, I managed to catch the eclipse — right before the Sun disappeared behind them!

Enjoy the eclipse!

FIREWORKS GALAXY, NGC 6946After weeks of chasing every clear night during the summer solstice period, from 8th June to 2...
27/06/2026

FIREWORKS GALAXY, NGC 6946

After weeks of chasing every clear night during the summer solstice period, from 8th June to 25th June, I finally completed one of my most ambitious projects yet—my favourite galaxy, NGC 6946, the Fireworks Galaxy.

While processing the data, I discovered I had several night of forgotten data from previous year that I'd never stacked. So I decided to combine everything into one master integration. After 4.5 hours of stacking, the final image was born.

The final dataset consists of:
🔹 623 × 300s broadband (UV/IR Cut)
🔹 88 × 300s narrowband (Optolong L-eXtreme)

That adds up to an incredible 711 individual 5-minute exposures for a total integration time of 59 hours 15 minutes!

Almost 60 hours of photons collected across multiple nights, waiting patiently for clear skies, and countless hours of processing—all for this one image. This is by far one of the deepest images I've captured of NGC 6946, revealing delicate hydrogen regions intertwined with its beautiful spiral structure.

**Equipment:**
🔭 Sky-Watcher 200PDS + 0.9× Coma Corrector (900mm, f/4.5)
📷 ZWO ASI533MC Pro
🔴 ZWO UV/IR Cut Filter & Optolong L-eXtreme Filter
⚙️ iOptron CEM70 Mount

Astrophotography is definitely a lesson in patience. Nearly 60 hours of exposure spread across weeks, waiting for the weather to cooperate, and every single photon was worth it.

I hope you enjoy this view of the spectacular Fireworks Galaxy (NGC 6946) as much as I enjoyed capturing it. Open to any further suggestions to improve my processing.
Clear skies!

The Elephant's Trunk Nebula, IC 1396The Elephant's Trunk Nebula (IC 1396A) is a fascinating dark nebula located within t...
18/06/2026

The Elephant's Trunk Nebula, IC 1396

The Elephant's Trunk Nebula (IC 1396A) is a fascinating dark nebula located within the larger IC 1396 emission region in the constellation Cepheus, approximately 2,400 light-years from Earth. Its distinctive shape resembles an elephant's trunk, created by a dense cloud of gas and dust being illuminated and ionized by the nearby massive star HD 206267.

Fresh off my camera, this is my second SHO narrowband image taken with a monochrome camera (ZWO ASI2600MM Pro). While mono imaging is certainly more time-consuming and demanding than One-Shot Colour (OSC) camera, the extra effort is worth it for the level of detail and flexibility it provides.

Collecting enough data for this image took nearly a month due to the short nights at this time of year. The final image represents a total integration time of 32 hours and 48 minutes.

**Image Details**

* Focal Length: 385mm
* Focal Ratio: f/4.75
* Sensor Temperature: -10°C

**Filters & integration**

* Optolong 7nm Ha: 122 × 300s
* Optolong 6.5nm OIII: 146 × 300s
* Optolong 6.5nm SII: 102 × 300s
* ZWO Red: 12 × 180s
* ZWO Green: 12 × 180s
* ZWO Blue: 12 × 180s

Total Exposure: 32h 48m

Location: Dorset, UK (Bortle 5)

Equipment details-

* William Optics GT81 IV + Flat 6AIII 0.8× Reducer
* ZWO ASI2600MM Pro
* iOptron GEM28
* Optolong SHO 2" Filters
* ZWO RGB 2" Filters (for stars)
* ZWO EAF & EFW
* ZWO ASIAIR Plus
* 30mm f/4 Guide Scope + ZWO ASI120MM Mini

Processing

* Stacked and processed in PixInsight

Andromeda galaxy, M31.Here I present Andromeda, the queen of galaxies and the largest member of the local group of galax...
22/01/2026

Andromeda galaxy, M31.

Here I present Andromeda, the queen of galaxies and the largest member of the local group of galaxies. There are two satellite galaxies M32 and M110. Situated at a distance of almost 2.5 million lightyears, this galaxy is rushing towards us, and expected to collide and merge with milky way in around 4-5 billion years. This galaxy core is visible to naked eye in a moonless night even from small town light pollution. The galaxy spans an area of 6 full moons in the night sky.

Constellation- Andromeda
Radius- 152,000 lightyears
Apparent magnitude- 3.44 (visible to naked eye)
Distance- 2.5million light years

Image details-
FL- 385mm, f/4.85, Gain 100, Sensor temp- -10°C
Exposure- 25hrs 40min
RGB- 255 x 300s
Ha- 53 x 300s
Stacking and post-process- Pixinsight, Light room
Bortle 5 sky

Gear details-
Telescope- William Optics GT81 IV + 6AIII 0.8x Flattener reducer
Camera- ZWO 533MC Pro
Mount- Ioptron GEM28
Filter- ZWO UV/IR, Optolong L-extreme
Guidescope- ZWO 30mm f/4 scope
Guide camera- ZWO 120MM mini
Focuser- ZWO EAF
ZWO AsiAir Pro

©️ Ferdous Ahmed Raffi

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BH1–11

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