skypi remote

One Pier Available For Lease

  • July 8, 2017

Great news!  We will have a pier available NOW. Pier rental is $575 per month and includes electric and internet. Contact us for more information. Experience Bortle 1 sky.

AstroImage- NGC 6992, The Rest of the Veil Story – Bob Rieger

  • November 11, 2016
“The last astro image I recently sent was NGC 6960, the Western Veil Nebula.  As you may remember, it is a remnant of a supernova explosion that occurred to a nameless star in the constellation of Cygnus some 3,000 to 6,000 years ago.  The shock waves of gas from the explosion formed a spherical shell moving outwards from the dying star.  While most of the shock wave is invisible to us, several of it’s brighter arcs are detectable by the eye using special filters.  Photographically, the shock waves of oxygen, hydrogen and sulfur are readily detectible.
I mentioned in my last email my next image would be of NGC 6992, the Eastern Veil Nebula.  That image is attached, and while it is similar to NGC 6960, you can see differences in the amount of oxygen (blue) and hydrogen (red).  It is believed the shock waves are relatively thin.  This is what causes the appearance of filaments of gas, since they are only visible when they line up along our line of sight.  The twisting of the filaments are actually undulations in the surface of the spherical shock wave that is moving outwards.
In order to provide a bit of perspective, here is a small graphic from the internet which shows the entire nebula in infrared light, with the major structures indicated.  The approximate center is where the original star explosion occurred:
ngc6992
Now, when you examine my attached image, you can get a sense of the overall size as compared to the relatively small area I am imaging.  The entire nebula is believed to be some 70 light years in diameter, at a distance of almost 1500 light years.  This nebula resides in the next closest arm of our Milky Way Galaxy.
 ngc-6992-eastern-veil
By the way, when you look at the internet photo, and the names of the nebula, you will note a rather curious thing.  It is not a mistake, but can you see it?
Do you see the designations of East and West confused?  Well, they are not- it’s just a matter of reference.  On the surface of the Earth, East and West are defined by meridians of longitude running left or right from the prime meridian.  In the sky, the reference point is is not from the surface of the Earth, but rather an imaginary vantage point infinitely far away where the observer is looking DOWN upon the Earth.  Now you can see the familiar orientation of West and East being left and right, respectively!
Hope you enjoy my image of NGC 6992, the Eastern Veil.”
Bob Rieger

PIER AVAILABLE AUGUST 1st

  • June 8, 2016

Great news!  We will have a pier available on August 1st. Pier rental is $650 per month and includes electric and internet. Contact us for more information. Experience Bortle 1 sky.

Meet the SkyPi Remote Observatory Team!!!!

  • April 4, 2015

SkyPi now has a Team page to announce the members of our team and give everyone an opportunity to meet each member.

First and foremost is John Evelan, the founding member of SkyPi. Without his skill, dream and tenacity SkyPi would not exist. He is always looking for new and innovative ways to improve operations. His desire is to make remote imaging affordable to the general astronomy community.  He has made that desire a reality.

Kevin Brown, our construction foreman/security manager and close friend. He has been with SkyPi from its’ inception and has contributed a lot of blood, sweat and tears. He works with John in the planning and construction of each observatory. Thank you Kevin!

Our newest member, Thomas Felber, is our IT developer and consultant. We are very lucky to have him on our team and he has quickly become a good friend to both John and I. He will soon be imaging at SkyPi so look for some wonderful images to be posted on our website. Tom currently resides in Vienna, Austria and we look forward to his next visit to the U.S.

Last, but not least, is Bob Birkett. Bob and John have been close friends for many years. Bob is the SkyPi astrophotography and imaging consultant. His telescope resides in the Alpha building at SkyPi and you can view some of his latest work on our site as well as Bob’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/bob.birket  Bob and his son, Brian, have been a valuable asset during the construction of the observatories.

As for me, Janet Pogue, I am a managing member, accountant, sales/marketing and chief cook and bottle washer for SkyPi Remote Observatories. Have questions about imaging at SkyPi and what it would take? Shoot me an email and I will assist you in any way I can.

In the meantime, peruse the rest of our website and check us out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SkypiOnlineObservatoryLlc .

Women in Science

  • August 22, 2014

Women in Science: Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958)
Biophysicist

Franklin went to Newnham College, Cambridge and graduated in 1941, but was only awarded a degree titular, as women were not entitled to degrees from Cambridge at the time; in 1945 Franklin received her PhD from Cambridge University.

Franklin’s x-ray diffraction photographs led to the understanding of the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). Her colleague, Maurice Wilkins, without obtaining her permission, made available to Watson and Crick her then unpublished x-ray diffraction pattern of the B form of DNA, which was crucial evidence for the helical structure of DNA.

Aside from her x-ray work with DNA, she also work with x-rays of lipids and proteins, and also did x-ray crystallography with the tobacco mosaic virus.

Franklin

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