Messier 87 is a supergiant elliptical galaxy located in the constellation Virgo. It is notable for its prominent jet of energetic plasma that originates from its core and extends at least 5,000 light-years. M87 is approximately 53.5 million light-years away from Earth.

Sh2-313, also known as Abell 35 or the Flaming Crown Nebula, is a planetary nebula located in the constellation Hydra. The distance to Sh2-313 is estimated to be between 1,200 to 1,500 light-years from Earth.

Messier 66 is a prominent spiral galaxy located in the constellation Leo, approximately 36 million light-years from Earth. It is the brightest member of the Leo Triplet, a small group of interacting galaxies that also includes Messier 65 and NGC 3628.

Messier 66 is a prominent spiral galaxy located in the constellation Leo, approximately 36 million light-years from Earth. It is the brightest member of the Leo Triplet, a small group of interacting galaxies that also includes Messier 65 and NGC 3628.

Arp 271 is a pair of interacting spiral galaxies, located approximately 130 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo. These galaxies are gradually being pulled together by gravity, their spiral arms stretching and distorting as they pass near each other.

Messier 40, also known as Winnecke 4, is a double star system located in the constellation Ursa Major. Charles Messier mistakenly believed it to be a nebula. The two stars are separated by about 50 arcseconds and are approximately 500 light-years away from Earth.

Sh2-188, also known as Shrimp nebula, is a planetary nebula located in the constellation Cassiopeia. It lies approximately 850 light-years away from Earth and spans a region of about 13 light-years across.

Sharpless 2-261, also known as Lower's Nebula, is a faint emission nebula located in the constellation Orion. Sh2-261 is an ionised hydrogen (HII) region energised by the ultraviolet radiation of nearby hot stars. This nebula lies roughly 3,300 light-years from Earth and spans about 50 light-years in diameter.

Caldwell 39 (NGC2392) is a bipolar double-shell planetary nebula (PN) in the constellation Gemini. The Sun-like central red star is surrounded by gas that it has emitted from its outer layers. The visible inner filaments are ejected by a strong wind of particles from the central star.

The Virgo cluster is a large area in the sky, packed with galaxies. The famous Markarian Chain may be the best known part of it, but there are many more pretty well visible galaxies around in the area. Explore this very wide-field recording of this exciting part of the night-sky.

On 29 March 2025, a partial solar eclipse was visible from the West of Europe and the East of North America. From Groningen, a maximum coverage of about 25% was reached around mid-day. While clouds prevented a continuous experience, some nice images and even a full timelapse of the event was created.

Solar imaging has been in the works for a long time now. But I’m now far enough with my setup that I can actually make decent solar images. See here the first result with both a full disk image and a close-up of a prominence. Both images are also processed as timelapse video. A lot of room for improvement, but off to a good start.

Messier 53 is a globular cluster located in the constellation Coma Berenices. It is one of the most distant globular clusters associated with the Milky Way, lying approximately 58,000 light-years from Earth. M53 is often observed alongside its neighbouring globular cluster, NGC 5053, which lies nearby in the sky.

Messier 67 is an open star cluster located in the constellation Cancer. It is one of the oldest known open clusters, with an estimated age of around 4 billion years, making it significantly older than most other open clusters in the Milky Way. M67 is situated approximately 2,700 light-years from Earth and contains over 500 stars, many of which are similar in age and composition to the Sun.

Sh2-230 is an H II region in the constellation Auriga, approximately 6,800-9,800 light-years from Earth. The nebula spans 16–26 light-years in diameter. The large region known as Sh2-230, but within this region, there are many more, often better known objects, such as M36, M38, Sh2-229, Sh2-234 and Sh2-236 ad Sh2-237.

Messier 109 is a barred spiral galaxy located in the constellation Ursa Major, approximately 83.5 million light-years from Earth. It is one of the brightest galaxies in the Ursa Major Cluster. M109 is notable for its prominent central bar structure. The galaxy has a magnitude of about 9.8. It spans roughly 180,000 light-years in diameter, making it slightly larger than the Milky Way.

Arp 41 is a grand design spiral galaxy located in the constellation Eridanus, approximately 60 to 65 million light-years away from Earth. It is part of Halton Arp's Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies, a catalog of unusual and distinctive galaxies. It includes a smaller, irregular companion galaxy, NGC 1232A, which appears to be interacting gravitationally with the main galaxy.

Caldwell 2, also known as NGC 40 or the Bow-Tie Nebula, is a planetary nebula located in the constellation Cepheus. The nebula is approximately 3,500 light-years away from Earth. It is a very small object, with an apparent diameter of only 0.9 arcmin.

Caldwell 48, also known as NGC2775, is a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Cancer. It is a so-called flocculent spiral galaxy, meaning the arms are patchy and discontinuous, giving them a fluffy or woolly appearance.

Messier 48 is an open star cluster in the constellation Hydra, the Water Snake. The cluster is situated approximately 1,500 light-years from Earth, making it one of the clusters closest to our solar system. M48 contains roughly 80 stars, most of which are young, hot, blue-white main-sequence stars.