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	Welcome to my little corner of the world wide web - please enjoy the images and information posted here. Over the years, I’ve found that taking images of the Universe around us with a CCD camera and a telescope has been one of the most frustrating, and most rewarding undertakings imaginable. I’ve been both challenged by and have enjoyed many cold nights under the stars, met a lifetime of friends, learned to utilize technology that I only imagined as a youngster, and have had the opportunity to observe and image our galactic neighbors in a variety of surroundings. I can summarize my awe, inspiration, and desire to step further in observation with the statement that “God created the Universe around us . . . I’m just documenting the event”. Please enjoy the images and info here, and email any feedback to rick@cosmicimage.com


	This beautiful double star is known as ‘Alberio’. It is a blue and gold colored pairing of stars in the constellation Cygnus. This particular image was a test image I took while attempting to fine tune the alignment and optical collimation of a 10” Newtonian Astrograph I had recently completed building. At the suggestion of a fellow imager, Jim Misti, I submitted the image to the NASA APOD (Astronomy Picture of the Day) site for consideration. I was pleasantly surprised when a few days later it was posted at their site. See http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap050830.html

NGC3628 is a bright edge on galaxy in the constellation Leo, lying approximately 35 million light years away..Although it is within close proximity to the well known Messier objects M65 and M66, this galaxy was missed by Messieurs’ observations. The three galaxies M65, M66 and NGC 3628 are together known as the ‘Leo Trio’. This image was obtained using a 10” f/5 corrected Newtonian with an Sbig ST2000 camera.


	NGC7380 is an open cluster in the constellation Cepheus. The bright stars in this image represent NGC7380 and the red emission nebula is designated as Sh2-142. It resides at a distance of only 7,200 light years from us. This image was obtained by combining 3 hours of Ha, 50 minutes Luminance, and about 1/2 hour each of R,G,B with a 10” f/5 corrected Newtonian / Sbig ST2000 camera.


	M81 is a beautiful spiral galaxy in the constellation Ursa Major (Big Bear), or the Big Dipper, at a distance of 12 million light years. This image was obtained by combining 70 minutes of Luminance and 5 minutes each of R,G,B binned 2x2 with a 10” f/5 corrected Newtonian / Sbig ST2000 camera.

M16 is an open cluster of stars in the constellation Serpens. As the Eagle Nebula, it is associated with the diffuse emission nebula IC 4703. This nebula is also home to a well known area called ‘The Pillars of Creation’, a large star formation area. This image was the result of obtaining 60 minutes through a Hydrogen Alpha filter with a 10” f/5 corrected Newtonian / Sbig ST2000 camera. This was a test image for this telescope, and was actually imaged through a bright column of light rising off of a well illuminated billboard sign along Route 22 in Pennsylvania. This demonstrates well the narrow band capability of a Hydrogen-Alpha filter.


	M27 is a planetary nebula in the constellation Vulpecula. It is commonly referred to as the Dumbbell Nebula due largely to the double lobed appearance through a telescope eyepiece. This image was taken through a Takahashi FSQ106 refractor with a Starlight Xpress HX916 ccd camera.


	M13 is a famous Globular Cluster in the constellation Hercules. It lies approximately 25,100 light years from us, and is estimated to contain over 100,000 stars. Under average skies, it can be seen with the naked eye appearing as a fuzzy star. This image acquired using a Vixen Visac telescope with a Starlight Xpress HX916 ccd camera.


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