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Welcome to the NYAA Image Gallery
The North York Astronomical Association is located in Toronto Canada.
In addition to the still shots in this gallery, members of the NYAA have created time lapse slide shows of events such as Total Solar Eclipses, Transits, Occultations, and the Milky Way rising. Click here for the slide shows.

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NYAA : 8 galleries with 1128 photos

8 galleries with 1128 photos

Updated: Jun 12, 2013 10:55am EDT

Starfest : 11 galleries with 277 photos

11 galleries with 277 photos

Updated: Aug 26, 2012 6:05pm EDT

Most Popular Photos

Image taken:
Nov. 16, 2009 8:58pm EST
Location:
Oak Heights Ontario, Canada
Details:
I had set up my camera pointing north to image the Leonids. I started the imaging at 19:00 on Nov 16 and let the camera run unattended until 6:17 on Nov 17. Most of the evening was uneventful but at 20:58 a bright fireball passed through the Little Dipper.

Canon 20Da with Nikon 16mm f3.5 lens, iso 1600 and 30" exposure.

Andreas Gada

Winner and Best in Show

A-DS-KerryAnn Lecky Hepburn-M42
M42
Date: October 30, 2008
Camera: QHY-8
Scope: Sky-Watcher 80mm Equinox, WO type II FF
Exposure: approx 3hrs total exp (5min, 1min subs)
scores: 9.6 8.7 9 27.3
Beautiful range. Love the detail in the cloudiness. Exquisite detail and shading. Just about as good as it gets. Remarkable at how such a striking image can be obtained with superb results using relatively simple equipment.

M51 Whirlpool Galaxy 4 hours exposure LRGB (130m L 40m each RGB) . Taken @ f 6.3 with C9.25 and FLI ML8300 camera. June 07, 2010 by Lynn Hilborn, Grafton, Ontario
M51 (NGC 5194 and NGC 5195) (The Whirlpool Galaxy)

Distance: 37 million light years

text copyright Robert Gendler 2006

M51 was the first spiral structure ever observed by Lord Rosse in 1850 at a time when the true nature of galaxies was unknown. Its undeniable beauty explains its recognition as a true showpiece of the night sky. Probably less appreciated is that M51 represents a dramatic demonstration of an interacting pair of galaxies. As truly immense structures, galaxies are relatively large compared to the average distance between them. Most galaxies are separated by a distance of only 20 times their diameter compared to stars which are separated by 10 million times their diameter. As a result most galaxies are likely to encounter other galaxies at least a few times over their immense lifetimes. The encounters run the gamut from "major" mergers involving the collision of two comparable mass galaxies to more "minor" mergers involving the consumption of a small companion or satellite galaxy by the more dominant galaxy.

Astronomers currently believe that galaxy formation is an ongoing hierarchical process. The basic form of a galaxy is established early in its history as the galaxy emerged from its primordial cloud. Billions of years later galaxies continue to evolve even in the present time, through major and minor mergers. Collisions and mergers certainly occurred with greater frequency in the early universe but without question continue into the present epoch as we observe many galaxies in the local universe, such as the M51 complex, showing the strong signatures of ongoing interactions. When encounters happen, the close proximity of the massive structures set up powerful gravitational forces known as tides. As the galaxies move closer the enormous attractive forces act to dramatically and often violently alter the structures of both participants.

The 51st entry in Messier's list actually represents 2 galaxies. NGC 5194 (also known as M51A) represents the magnificent spiral, while NGC 5195 (also known as M51B) is likely an irregular type dwarf galaxy now located behind the larger spiral galaxy.
There have been many attempts to explain the morphology and evolution of the NGC 5194/5195 system including its apparent tidal bridges and grand design spiral shape. Classic papers by Toomre (1972), Howard (1990), and Rots (1990) have provided valuable insight into the evolution of the M51 complex and are summarized below.

Simulations suggest that NGC 5195 is located well behind NGC 5194 and that the two galaxies are now traveling away from each other. The two galaxies had their closest recent approach some 70 million years ago, when the less massive NGC 5195 encountered the disk of NGC 5194 in a highly inclined passage. The effects of that interaction include several conspicuous disturbed features as well as a general brightening and strengthening of the inner spiral arms of NGC 5194. The disturbed features include the marked asymmetry of the spiral arms both near and far (north and south) in relation to the companion NGC 5195. The near arm appears thin and extended and the far arm fans out as an extended tidally disturbed structure. The extraordinary plumes that extend north, northwest, and southeast from the companion were likely torn from it as it engaged the more massive spiral in its recent encounter. The apparent spiral arm-bridge (northern arm) between the two galaxies is an illusion as NGC 5195 is far behind the NGC 5194, the near spiral arm being superimposed over the disk of NGC 5195 in the same line of sight. A visible area of intense star formation is conspicuous near the nucleus of NGC 5195 and was almost surely triggered from the time of the recent approach. Not all the disturbed features of the M51 complex are believed to be from the recent encounter. Radio surveys have detected an immense gas cloud with no optical counterpart that fans out along the eastern side of the M51 complex, extending some 300,000 light years in length and carrying about 500 million solar masses. It appears to be an extension of the optically apparent far spiral arm but is most likely an independent feature and a relic from a previous crossing that occurred as much as 400 million years ago.

The ultimate fate of the M51 complex will likely be a gradual decay in the orbit of the companion (the orbital period now is about 500 million years with a major axis of about 50,000 light years) towards a final merger with the spiral and eventual tidal breakup of the companion in about 1 to 2 billion years.

Honorable Mention
A-DS-Debra and Peter Ceravolo-Horsehead and Flame Nebulae
Telescope used- Ceravolo 300 (12 inch corrected Cassegrain) F/4.9 wide field
Camera- Apogee U16M with LRGBHa Astrodon Filters
Exposure time in total-2.3 hours
Date taken and processed-Dec. 2008
Image Acquisition by Peter Ceravolo
Image Processing by Debra Ceravolo
scores: 8.1 8.7 8.9 25.7
superb shot with quality equipment. Detail is fabulous, colours are correct.

Montage of moon entering umbra to mid eclipse during December 21, 2010 lunar eclipse. Exposures are approximately 4 minutes apart except for the longer interval at the start of the umbra phase in the upper left. All photos taken from Whitby, Ontario using a Nikon D90 at the prime focus of a 6"f7 Newtonian tracking at lunar rate on a German equatorial mount. Exposures, all at ISO 400, range from 1/500 to 1/60 sec for umbra entry to multiple seconds for total umbra. GIMP used to tweak exposure values for a pleasing transition and to combine into a montage.
Dave Ledger.

Moon at greatest lunar eclipse on morning of December 21, 2010 as seen from my backyard in Whitby, Ontario. Photo taken with Nikon D90 at prime focus on 6"f7 Newtonian telescope mounted on German equatorial mount tracking at lunar rate. Exposure is 8 seconds with ISO 400.
Dave Ledger

Wide angle Orion 20x2min on AstroTrac,350D modified,Canon 200mm f2.8
Lynn Hilborn..Whistle Stop Observatory 44N78W

Blink animation of Super Nova SN2011dh **** BLINK ONLY WORKS IN ORIGINAL SIZE **** put your cursor on the picture and select "Original"
This is a blink of two image sessions...March 24, 2011 and June 07, 2011. The SN was discovered May 31, 2011.
Images by Lynn Hilborn, WhistleStop Obs, Grafton.

Runner Up
A-DS-KerryAnn Lecky Hepburn-Rosette Nebula HaRGB
Date: January 7, 2009
Camera: QHY-8
Scope: Sky-Watcher 80mm Equinox, WO type II FF
Exposure: RGB: 5x10min and 15x5min, Ha: 7x10min
scores: 9.5 8.5 8.5 26.5
superb. Stars are pinpoints. Lovely for the size of the scope. Processing is superb.

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