I pray that all of you had a wonderful Christmas! Personally, my parish of St. Olaf had a wonderful Christmas. The Mass attendance was good, the joy was high and I was able to see people I haven’t seen in some time who came home to be with family for the Christmas season.
Christmas can also be a challenging time. Amid the joys of the season I also had two funerals with a third that will happen in the spring. Though the passing from time to eternity was not a surprise to the families, when death comes around holidays it can create a somber disposition of heart amid a season of celebration. To those who follow our blog and lost a loved one this Christmas season, please accept my deep condolences and my heartfelt prayer for you and your family.
Something that many in the northern parts of our world hope for is a “white” Christmas. Well, in Wisconsin I think it safe to say that a white Christmas was achieved! The picture to the left was taken through the window of my recotory office where I write most of my reflections. Yes, this is the “backyard” that I dub in the title of many of my posts. Needless to say that amid a white Christmas, it hasn’t been the best weather for stargazing.
At the same time, amid a busy Christmas season, it’s actually nice to have an excuse to simply rest and watch the snow fall. This also gave me some time to do some final preparations for this year’s ACME Workshop. As I shared two posts ago, I want to show participants how to edit astrophotography images. I acquired some narrowband, monochrome data sets to see if I could find two or three that would be good for the workshop. Since my presentation time is limited, I need to find data sets that are quick to stack and quick to edit. Here are a couple data sets that I think might work! One is a wide angle L,R,G,B capture of the Horse Head and Flame Nebulae while the other is narrowband image set of NGC3576 in Ha, OIII and SII. For those not familiar with the alphabet soup of astrophotography, the letters represent what types of filters were used. Each filter can collect very specific light wavelengths that help enhance a deep space object. Here is a breakdown of each filter set.
Horse Head and Flame: L-Luminance, R-Red, G-Green and B-Blue
NGC3576: Ha – Hydrogen Alpha, OIII – Oxygen III and SII – Sulfer II
The above images are from the same data set of NGC3576 presented with two “color pallets.” The different “false colorings” not only present beautiful images, but can help in scientific research. Here’s a nice, basic video explaining monochrome imaging and the science of color.
Below is the L,R,G,B capture of the Flame and Horse Head Nebulae. This is not only one of my favorite targets, but is loved by many astrophotographers. If the skies cooperate, we’ll take a crack at imaging this beautiful image at ACME!
At the risk of sounding a little too sentimental, when I look at these images during the Christmas season I can’t help but see them as God’s Christmas lights. Yes, a bit cheesy, but it also affirms the beauty of the created world we live in and how we can engage with it in meaningful ways.
So, in conclusion, to our Sacred Space Astronomy readers, Merry Christmas! To our ACME participants, I look forward to editing these images with you! I found this video from one of my favorite YouTube channels, “Smarter Everyday,” that explains the James Webb Telescope’s mechanical details. It reminded me of the Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab we will visit at ACME. Enjoy!
