Sonoran Dark Skies
Images of the Night Sky by Larry Phillips
The Heavens declare the glory of God; The skies proclaim the work of His hands.
Psalms 19:1
Psalms 19:1
Welcome to my website dedicated to displaying my efforts at imaging the wonders of the universe. I have been intereseted in astronomy all my life but have just recently been able to pursue my interest in recording images of the night sky with any real dedication. This was made possible by two things: retirement and moving to Tucson. These images are taken in the Sonoran Desert of the Southwestern US.
I have been using an Astro-Physics (AP) 130mm EDT f8 refractor telescope until February 2008. Any image taken as of Feb 8, 2008 has been taken using a new Astro-Physics 140mm EDT f7.5 refractor.
For cameras I have used both an SBIG ST-2000XM CCD and a modified Canon EOS 350D/Rebel XT digital camera in the past. In addition to the AP 140 telescope I also use Nikon 180mm and 300mm lenses. As of March 26, 2008 I began using an AP Mach1 GTO mount that replaced a Losmandy G11 mount. And as of May 2010 I replaced the ST-2000XM CCD with an SBIG ST-10XME CCD.
You may also notice that this site is a record of my imaging/processing skills as the newer images are much improved compared to the older ones.
I have been using an Astro-Physics (AP) 130mm EDT f8 refractor telescope until February 2008. Any image taken as of Feb 8, 2008 has been taken using a new Astro-Physics 140mm EDT f7.5 refractor.
For cameras I have used both an SBIG ST-2000XM CCD and a modified Canon EOS 350D/Rebel XT digital camera in the past. In addition to the AP 140 telescope I also use Nikon 180mm and 300mm lenses. As of March 26, 2008 I began using an AP Mach1 GTO mount that replaced a Losmandy G11 mount. And as of May 2010 I replaced the ST-2000XM CCD with an SBIG ST-10XME CCD.
You may also notice that this site is a record of my imaging/processing skills as the newer images are much improved compared to the older ones.
If you have visited in the past, this is my new website which replaces the previous one. I had a hard drive failure, lost all of my website info, and had to recreate my website. So I redesigned it. Unfortunately, because of the loss of data, many of my more recent images (between early 2009 to early 2011) have no exposure information.
Elephant Trunk Nebula
Do not use or distribute any image on this website without permission.
24 new images were added 8/25/2012. Look for images dated March 2011 and later. Click on "Galaxies", "Nebulae", or "Narrowband" and look for the link at the bottom to page 2. There is also in the "Solar System", a partial solar eclipse image.