September Object of The Month, “Veil Nebula”
This image of the “Pickering’s Triangle” region of the Veil Nebula was captured this month under Bortle 5 skies in Linganore, MD using a 9.25″ Celestron SCT at f6.3. Additional capture details…
Losmandy G11G
ASI294mc pro
ZWO duo narrow band filter
107 x 180” lights with darks, flats and dark-flat calibration frames
NINA, PHD2, and PixInsight
Past HAL Public Meeting: October 9, 2025 – Looking Back at A Century of Innovation in Amateur Telescope Making — Is It Still Worth It?”
Featuring Guy Brandenburg speaking from experience on “Looking Back at A Century of Innovation in Amateur Telescope Making”
Past HAL Public Meeting: September 11, 2025 – Lunar Environment Monitoring Station (LEMS)
Mehdi Benna, Planetary Scientist with NASA at GSFC will be talking about the Lunar Environment Monitoring Station
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 8/31/2025
Ten HAL members showed up for a very pleasant evening of observing and imaging at Alpha Ridge Park on the night of August 30th. The first-quarter moon was out until a little after 11:00. The temperature started out in the low 70s and dipped to the high 50s by 1:00 AM. Seeing and transparency seemed […]
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 8/23/2025
At least 17 HAL members enjoyed a wonderful night under the stars at the HAL members start party at Alpha Ridge Park on the night of August 23/24. Skies were clear all night, with comfortable temperatures in the low 70s and a 5-10 mph breeze. Several people were making visual observations. New member Colin was […]
Past HAL Public Meeting: August 21, 2025 – NASA Balloon Program Operations
Presenter: Andrew Hamilton Deputy Chief, NASA Balloon Program Office Andrew Hamilton Artifacts: Meeting PDF YouTube Video of Meeting The meeting took place on August 21, 2025 at 7 PM on Zoom and at the Robinson Nature Center . Andrew Hamilton is currently serving as the Deputy Chief for the NASA Balloon Program having previously […]
Public Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 8/02/2025
Clear Skies!
Impromptu Star Party (Alpha Ridge) 7/21/2025
Eight HAL members enjoyed clear skies and pleasant weather at Alpha Ridge on the night of July 21-22. Wildfire smoke reduced transparency, but it wasn’t too bad. Mike imaged M101, the Pinwheel Galaxy in Ursa Major, with his Svbony Sv550 122mm refractor. Gary didn’t have a target in mind for his Celestron Origin smart telescope […]
The Very Small Array (VSA): A New Era in Collaborative Astronomy
The Very Small Array (VSA) is a grassroots, community-driven astrophotography initiative that brings together amateur astronomers using smart telescopes.
Past Meeting July 17, 2025 – Presentations: The Retina and Observing, Observing and Astronomical Drawing
We had two great speakers:
• Chris Todd on the retina
• Rich Orr on Astronomical Drawing