21 April 2013 - Solar Observation

It has been currently very hot here in Manila, Philippines with temperatures exceeding that of the previous years. Makes me want to wonder more about its relation to the current solar maxima. Anyways, I decided to take my telescope out to observe the Sun.

Here you can see two of the rapidly emerging sunspot groups - active regions 1726 and 1727 - in the Sun's Northern Hemisphere.

International Dark Sky Week

April 5-11 is the International Dark Sky Week. It is part of the Global Astronomy Month celebration, and a program of the International Dark-Sky Association, that seeks to share the beauty of the night sky and at the same time raise awareness on the issue of light pollution.

Light pollution is not just a problem for astronomers, but it is also a problem that affects the environment, the energy sector, as well as our health.

Part of the efforts to make others aware of dark-sky preservation is the measurement of light pollution levels as well as sharing wonderful images of the night sky in a vantage point of a dark site. I decided to upload some of my astrophotos of various starfields in the Philippines to aid in dark-sky awareness.

Dark-skies from Tuding, Baguio City

Late night sky from RTU, Mandaluyong. Sky is still sufficiently bright due to urban lighting.

Ursa Major region taken from Taytay, Rizal

Dark skies from Laguna

PAGASA observatory, Quezon City

Night sky from Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental