Scotia Astro

22/10/2026

I’m slowly working my way through the treasure trove of data that I’ve collected with my remote SeeStar S30 Pro in southern Australia.

From my location ‘up here’ at 56 degrees north, I can’t really put a great deal of time on the Rho Ophiuchi and Antares regions, so I took advantage of my southern scope and have been framing targets across this vast swathe of the night sky.

This section puts Antares or Alpha Scorpii front and centre.

Located right in the heart of the constellation of Scorpius, Antares is the brightest star in the ‘Scorpion’ and one of the brightest in the night sky. It sits just over 500 light years from Earth, so is a very close neighbour in cosmic terms.

With the naked eye (and through my wee SeeStar), Antares appears as a lone beacon, but it’s actually accompanied by a fainter companion star, designated as Antares B. So, Antares is in actual fact a binary system and not a single star.

As a Red Supergiant, Antares A will be going supernova at some point in the future and what a sight that will be!

Thanks for looking and wishing you all clear skies!

⏱️ 157 x 30s
🎯 Antares
🔭 SeeStar S30 Pro

ZWO Astrophotography Seestar Martin Pugh Astrophotography

16/10/2026

Out under the stars tonight, testing the very sleek StellaMira 66mm ED2 Quad APO…🔭📸✨

This is one of three scopes which were very kindly sent to me by the awesome team at First Light Optics here in the UK 🇬🇧

I’m going to be having a play with all of them over the winter, using a wide range of gear and then share my thoughts with you all on my YouTube Channel…so make sure your subscribed, so you don’t miss it! 🎥

It’s out under the stars, chugging away as I write this, but from the early subs that I’ve seen, this is one of the sharpest scopes I’ve ever used!

It’s a solid scope with an exquisite build quality and I can already tell it’ll be a winner!

Hope you’re all getting some time at your scopes and under the stars…clear skies to you all! ✨

🔭 StellaMira 66 ED2 Quadruplet APO
📸 ZWO 2600MC Pro
🔭 Skywatcher AZ-EQ6 GT Pro
⭕️ Altair 6nm DualBand Ha/OIII Filter
💻 ZWO ASIAIR Plus

ZWO Astrophotography Altair Astro Astronomy Sky-Watcher USA Sky-Watcher

14/10/2026

My wife says I'm taking my Neighbourhood Watch duties a bit too seriously with this setup! 🤣

Bagged this 'as new' Omegon Kolossus Pro mount with half pier and tripod package on a recent clearance sale from the excellent team down at Rother Valley Optics...plonked my 20 x 80 Celestron Skymaster Pro bins on them for a dry run and balance test.

Colossal it certainly is, but it's a solid rig and I'm excited to get it out under the stars!

Hoping for first light testing tomorrow! 🙏🏻✨

Omegon.com Celestron Rother Valley Optics

13/10/2026

My Helix Project continues at the fabulous Kagga Kamma Eco-Lodge & Spa Remote Observatory in South Africa…🔭📸🇿🇦

Final results coming soon! 👨🏻‍💻

🔭 Askar FRA300 Pro
📸 ZWO 533MM Pro
🔭 ZWO AM5
⭕️ Antlia 31mm 7nm SHO
🔴 Antlia 31mm LRGB
💻 ZWO ASIAIR Plus

AstroCapetown ZWO Astrophotography Antlia Astronomy Filter Sharpstar Optics

10/10/2026

Aurora Ho! 😲✨

BBC Sky at Night Magazine

06/10/2026

First light test incoming with this awesome wee refractor from Sightron…🔭

The Infini D50L is a long focus ‘traditional’ f16 achromat from Japan and I already know that I’m going to have a ton of fun with it!

You’ll be seeing it feature soon on my YouTube Channel as part of a new visual series that I’ve been working on, so stay tuned! 🎥🔭✨

Hope you’re all well and getting some time at your scopes under the stars…👍🏻

🔭 Sightron D50L 50mm f/16 Refractor

First Light Optics BBC Sky at Night Magazine

03/10/2026

Super excited to unveil my BIGGEST telescope so far, which is now ready to explore our miraculous Universe!

I’ve always wanted a big Dob and this beast will keep me busy for the foreseeable…🔭✨🤣

Recently, I’ve really been enjoying getting out for visual sessions, as the weather here in my part of the UK is so unpredictable.

Imaging can be tricky, so to scratch my Astro itch, I’ve been steadily collecting visual gear which I’ll share on here and as a new series on my YouTube Channel!

Stay tuned for first light video and let me know in the comments below what visual scope(s) you have in your Astro arsenal!

Huge thanks to First Light Optics for the usual speedy and no fuss delivery…first class service all the way! 👍🏻

🔭 StellaLyra 12 inch Dobsonian
🔎 1520mm
🏎️ F5

BBC Sky at Night Magazine

01/10/2026

Loads of great deals here at First Light Optics! Grab a bargain while stocks last…🔭📸✨

We're tidying up! The Less Messier Clearance is on now.

Throughout October, we're clearing our shelves of one of a kind pieces, second chance returns and hidden gems, all looking for new homes under the stars.

We'll be adding new items throughout the month, and the clearance runs until midnight on 31st October.

Explore the Clearance: https://www.firstlightoptics.com/october-clearance-sale.html

Once they're gone, they're gone, so check back often!

12/09/2026

A cool case of ‘Two Birds With One Scope’ in my latest image from southern Australia! *Click for full view*🤣

I managed to capture the beautiful Eagle and Swan Nebulae in one frame, thanks to the wide field view of the awesome wee SeeStar S30 Pro, which I’m running remotely at Martin Pugh’s excellent facility.

The Eagle Nebula, classified as M16, lies around 7,000 light years from Earth in the constellation of Serpens. It contains a feature known as the Pillars of Creation, which is famous from the image taken of it by the Hubble Space Telescope.

The Swan Nebula (sometimes referred to as The Omega Nebula) is classified as M17 and is located in the constellation of Sagittarius, some 5,500 light years away. It’s a massive star factory, where new stars are formed within the mass of gas and dust of this stunning deep sky object.

Hope you’re all getting some time at your scopes and clear skies to you all…🔭📸🦅🦢

⏱️ 276 x 30s
🎯 M16 ‘The Eagle Nebula’ & M17 ‘The Swan Nebula’
🔭 SeeStar S30 Pro

Martin Pugh Astrophotography ZWO Astrophotography Seestar

10/09/2026

An awesome addition to the excellent ToupTek range!! 🔥🔭📸