"Move over Buzz, you're in my shot!"

August 18, 2009

It's been a while since I last played with Photoshop, so I thought today would be a great day to fiddle with an iconic Apollo image... and paste a ground squirrel in a space helmet over the top. 90 minutes later, this is the result.

There is a story to this (and yes, it's an even more substantial story than yesterday's "rampaging space cows" saga), starting in Canada's Banff National Park where a couple thought they were going to capture the perfect holiday shot...

For the full story, have a look at my rantings over on Astroengine.com...

Space Station Spotting Fun with @Twisst

July 30, 2009

This last week has been great fun for spotting the International Space Station passing over California. However, those of you that know me, I'm not much of a practical astronomer (I still don't own my own telescope, shocking). However, I'm gradually building up my astronomical skills by spending some time in the back yard, looking up.

Although I live quite close to the lights of Los Angeles, I'm far enough away to get a really good view of the night sky, especially during these warm summer nights. I've spotted some superbly bright meteors and tried my hand at spotting some constellations. But most recently, I've been on space station watch.

Something Strange Stalks the Space Station

July 07, 2009

Over at SpaceWeather.com, reports have been coming in of observers seeing a strange object following the International Space Station (ISS) as it passes overhead. What could it be? It's certainly a smaller object than the space station, and we know it's not the shuttle (we have a few more days until the launch of the delayed Endeavour). Perhaps it's a UFO? Well, for casual observers, this is certainly an "unidentified" flying object, but one ace astrophotographer managed to capture the the object through his lens, revealing its true identity...