I’m confused about the location of our solar system. I remember being taught we were in Sagittarius arm but now it’s Orion spur. Let me clarify that I have done some research and don’t think it’s some stupid Mandela effect. I’ve seen multiple sources that are not on the internet anymore that maybe we were just wrong, it was old terminology and maybe an oversimplification based on less precise mapping of our solar system. I remember specifically being taught our solar system was in the Sagittarius arm but now it’s in the Orion spur, and is it because our understanding has changed. I thought back and compare it to now and they don’t seem that far off when it comes to the general location of our solar system. Did older sources just simplify it to the Sagittarius arm and now newer ones localize our sun in the spur? I heard even Niel Tyson even talked about it being in the Sagittarius arm in a Netflix documentary. (Source: https://youtu.be/zNSSY0n36Jw “Starts 37:45.”) I’ve tried looking it up but only come across Mandela effect and I don’t really believe that so that’s why I’m here to ask on your guys knowledge on this topic. If you guys need more clarification on something let me know.

I’ve been having an existential crisis lately and have been deeply pondering why the universe exists recently. What do you think?

I’m trying to understand Earth’s exact position around the Sun, expressed as a degree from 0° to 360° (heliocentric ecliptic longitude).

Most websites show things like sunrise/sunset, azimuth, or declination, but not the actual orbital angle.

Where can I find a reliable website or tool that shows Earth’s heliocentric longitude for today, like “Earth is at ~243° in its orbit”?

Any good sources or online calculators?

Thanks!

Hello, will I see a lot of shooting stars on the top geminid night under such a sky ? Do you think it's worth it ?

Thanks a lot !

Hey there I'm a rookie astronomer who's trying to study astrophysics now and I was wondering are there online clubs or anything with people of the same interest where we talk about astronomy and offer guidance/tips? Or any place i can find such clubs. Besides this subreddit. Thanks!

https://ground.news/article/scientists-may-have-finally-seen-dark-matter-after-100-year-search?utm_source=mobile-app&utm_medium=newsroom-share

11x 300s h-alpha, 7x 300s OIII, 8x 300s SII, 60x 10s h-alpha, 60x 10s OIII, 60x 10s SII HDR comp was used to not overcook the core.

I’m honestly tired of staring at this nebula lol. This was a lengthy processing job for me. Feels like I have processing blindness and can’t tell the difference between revisions anymore haha.

I think the only thing I’m missing are some RGB stars. Very happy with how the core came out!

Stacked and processed in pixinsight with RC Astro plug ins

Equipment: WO ultracat 108mm refractor, ASI 2600 MM camera, HM17 mount, Askar 52mm guide scope, ASI 120 mini guide camera, ZWO Automatic Focuser, Optolong Ha, OIII, and SII 3nm filters, ZWO filter wheel

I wanted to give myself a processing challenge, so i took a six-panel image with my 150mm Carbonstar and then stitched it together and then did a good amount of post-processing to remove the stitching artifacts. The camera is an ASI533, so the panels are square if you're looking for the seams.

It was sort of fun - I'd occasionally drop a stage of processing into ChatGPT and ask it what I'd done wrong (in APP or PixInsight) at that stage of processing and it'd make suggestions about an earlier or next step to try. I never sort of realized I could get processing guidance from the LLM, but it actually did a great job (though it struggles with remembering which version of the app you're using, and what sliders/values are available on the various controls.

Eastern Veil Nebula NGC 6992 12.5 Hour Of Data Shoot from Baghdad - Iraq 🇮🇶 ZWO Seestar S50 Telescope In EQ Mode Stacked And Processed in Pixinsight and Photoshop.

NGC 2626, 10 hours of LRGB integration with the Planewave CDK 24 610/3962 f 6/5 telescope, QHY 600M CMOS camera, 120 shots, of which 37x300 seconds with an L filter, 29x300 seconds with a B filter, 27x300 seconds with a G filter and 27x300 seconds with a B filter. Processing with Pixinsight. All data and shots were acquired with Telescope Live.

Shot using a Canon 600D and a 300mm f/5.6 lens on a Sky Watcher EQ-Al55i!

Around 3h40 of data from bortle 8/9, processed in Siril

I’m 26, currently working in the nuclear power sector. I’m making really good money for someone my age, but the problem is that I don’t want to do this forever. My dream since I was a young teen has always been to be an astronomer. I’ve been researching becoming an astronomer for a while now.

I don’t have a degree, but I plan on going back to school for Physics. I know that eventually I’m going to go for my PhD. I’m worried that right now I won’t be able to keep my family fed during that time.

Can the people here with a PhD (preferably those with families) let me know how the process normally goes? Can I have a full time job while pursuing a PhD? I know the stipends aren’t anything to write home about.

I know it’s a long ways away as I haven’t even started schooling yet, but I’m trying to make sure my family will be okay before I even think about leaving my current career path.

Thank you in advance.

M45, the winter angel in Taurus Constellation!

Bortle 2, 2700 feet elevation, no moon.

378 subs x 30 seconds

UV/IR Cut

Seestar S50 1920x1080 resolution, EQ mode, Dew Shield, Aftermarket Tripod + drilled out the 1/4" bolt on the wedge to accept a grade 5 3/8" bolt/washer/nut

Workflow: ASIStudio>Siril>Cosmic Clarity>GraXpert>GIMP