Hamza Ilyas Hilaluddin

M101 - The Dusty Pinwheel Galaxy and a Supernova! You can imagine my surprise back in May, when just a few days after getting started photographing this galaxy in my front garden, the news broke that a Supernova had just been discovered I was over the moon seeing the exploded star appear in the photos Needless to say, I thought this would be a great time to do a full project highlighting the Ha areas within the galaxy I must say, I had to resist stretching the data into overt artistic considerations given there appeared to be an ample amount of dust/tidal streams surrounding M101 I was tempted to see if there was any IFN nearby but held off given the potential to ruin the image with London's finest light pollution gradients no doubt lurking in the shadows (no pun intended!)
NASA details as follows:
About 170,000 light-years across, this galaxy is enormous, almost twice the size of our own Milky Way galaxy Its core is dominated by light from cool yellowish stars Along its grand design spiral arms are the blue colors of hotter, young stars mixed with obscuring dust lanes and pinkish star forming regions
A nearby star has exploded and humanity's telescopes are turning to monitor it The supernova, dubbed SN 2023ixf, was discovered by Japanese astronomer Koichi Itagaki three days ago and subsequently located on automated images from the Zwicky Transient Facility two days earlier SN 2023ixf occurred in the photogenic Pinwheel Galaxy M101, which, being only about 21 million light years away, makes it the closest supernova seen in the past five years, the second closest in the past 10 years, and the second supernova found in M101 in the past 15 years Rapid follow up observations already indicate that SN 2023ixf is a Type II supernova, an explosion that occurs after a massive star runs out of nuclear fuel and collapses

Like many of you, as a child, I often glanced up at my (light polluted) skies and seeing the #stars, wished I had a telescope and perhaps even one day, become an astronaut Inspired by pictures from #Hubble, I’ve carried this dream into adulthood After realising I can now certainly afford a telescope (or two😉), it was time to peer through the eyes of my own “Time Machine”! Since then, I’ve been gathering light that have been traveling in some cases, for millions of years!
It is my pleasure to collaborate with the @europeanspaceagency and provide you unprecedented access to the exclusive and elite Baitul Nur (House of Light) Observatory, highlighting some of my favourite photos taken from both the #Solar and Deep Space Wings😄
This is a tribute to the backyard astronomer and the love of learning I hope this will be inspirational for you aspiring astronomers and stargazers alike!
Ah yes, and believe it or not, SCT telescopes are also excellent for globular clusters 😆
Wishing you all clear skies, Hamza & @europeanspaceagency
Special Thanks to:
@ataurraziq / Raziq uk for his awesome editing
The Great iPhone Film Crew: @qudds1a & @bfmxlik
Image Details:
1 Sun and the U-Shaped Prominence, 10/2022
2 Large Solar Prominence- Reach for the Sky! 10/2022
3 Inverted Realities - Hazy Sun and an Airliner, 5/2023
4 Starless M31 - Andromeda Galaxy, 12/2021
5 Heart Nebula - IC1805, 1/2021
6 M42 - The Great Orion Nebula, 11/2021
7 Spring’s Pink Mineral Moon, 4/2023
8 M101 - The Pinwheel Galaxy and Supernova SN 2023ixf, 5/2023
9 M13 - Globular Cluster, 4/2021
#europeanspaceagency #youresa #universeviewscreen #nasa @bbcskyatnightmag

Last week, we were sadly rained out of Carbis Bay, in Cornwall for our UK Astro trip Given I was locked and loaded with all my gear I was determined to go SOMEWHERE!
I had a look around and found this awesome campsite at @ivybankstaycation in North Yorkshire Mag 21 4 skies and equipped with a super helpful and friendly family who ensured all was perfect for me! I rented this little pod which also came with a great deck for my gear and I was all set to go!
Although the weekend was quite windy, the useable data was leagues ahead from what I normally collect in my light polluted location in London Even had a chance to test my new 130mm triplet refractor Can’t wait to return✨✨✨
Be sure to check them out next time you’re in the area!
#stars #yorkshiredales #ivybankcamping #stargazing #ukastronomy

The latest view of the Sun on 30 April 2024 while testing my newly converted 130mm refractor + Quark If the seeing is ever any good (assuming we actually ever get sunny days here) - I’ll definitely have fun with this set up 😉
#astronomy #islam @skyandtelescopemag #ahmadiyya #ukastronomy @bbcskyatnight #rasc_national @rasc_national @nasa #astronomypicturesdaily #amateurastrophotography #cosmos @youresa #space #stars #universo #stargazing #igworldclub_astrophotography #astrophotographers #sunspots #solarimaging #summer #fire #sun

Sunspot AR3654 on 30 April 2024 I certainly love the detail of this 130mm refractor😉
#astronomy #islam @skyandtelescopemag #ahmadiyya #ukastronomy @bbcskyatnight #rasc_national @rasc_national @nasa #astronomypicturesdaily #amateurastrophotography #cosmos @youresa #space #stars #universo #stargazing #igworldclub_astrophotography #astrophotographers #sunspots #solarimaging #summer #fire #sun

Sunspots AR3668 and AR3664 taken from my drive on Tuesday May 7, 2024 These are some of the incredible examples of this week's amazingly beautiful magnetically active regions of our nearest star
Often accompanied by proms, solar flares and coronal mass ejections, they are easily identified by their obvious dark appearance on an otherwise bright solar surface
Strangely enough, this pair of sun spots seem to have taken a different appearance: some see a worm, others a baby chick, stretching it's neck to peer above the sea of hydrogen gas
What do you see?😉
#astronomy #islam @skyandtelescopemag #ahmadiyya #ukastronomy @bbcskyatnight #rasc_national @rasc_national @nasa #astronomypicturesdaily #amateurastrophotography #cosmos @youresa #space #stars #universo #stargazing #igworldclub_astrophotography #astrophotographers #sunspots #solarimaging #summer #fire #sun #sunspots

Aurora at my house in U K 😮

Sunspots AR3661, 3663 and 3666 taken from my drive on Tuesday May 7, 2024 These are the last of the images I've taken of some of the above active regions of our nearest star
You'll notice these shots are displayed in monochrome/false colour and a solo shot in typical inverted fashion
Often accompanied by proms, solar flares and coronal mass ejections, they are easily identified by their obvious dark appearance on an otherwise bright solar surface
#astronomy #islam @skyandtelescopemag #ahmadiyya #ukastronomy @bbcskyatnight #rasc_national @rasc_national @nasa #astronomypicturesdaily #amateurastrophotography #cosmos @youresa #space #stars #universo #stargazing #igworldclub_astrophotography #astrophotographers #sunspots #solarimaging #summer #fire #sun #sunspots

Active Region 3664 - The Open Wound
Although I initially set up my rig with the intention of completing a timelapse of the now famous active region AR3664, sadly, intermittent clouds rolled in and I was forced to cut the session short Luckily, I managed to not only have pretty decent seeing that day, but I was able to get several videos of the sunspot just a few days before it began releasing powerful CMEs
This last image was amongst the best of the 7 30 sec videos taken that day I processed this one in two versions - uninverted and inverted as I generally prefer uninverted images, especially for sunspots or close up on the chromosphreric surface, though when proms or filaments are included, inverted can be more appealing
I've also processed the uninverted shot in a deeper red - this is closer to what I envision the actual hydrogen appearance would be Hope you enjoy
#astronomy #islam @skyandtelescopemag #ahmadiyya #ukastronomy @bbcskyatnight #rasc_national @rasc_national @nasa #astronomypicturesdaily #amateurastrophotography #cosmos @youresa #space #stars #universo #stargazing #igworldclub_astrophotography #astrophotographers #sunspots #solarimaging #summer #fire #sun #sunspots

Active Sun of May 20, 2024 as imaged from my front garden
#astronomy #islam #skyandtelescopemag #ahmadiyya #ukastronomy #bbcskyatnight #rasc_national @rasc_national #nasa @passione astrofotografia #astronomypicturesdaily #amateurastrophotography #astrophoto #astro_photography_ #astronomyphotography #cosmos #deepsky #deepskyastrophotography #youresa #space #stars #universe #universo #stargazing #igworldclub_astrophotography #astrophotographie #astronomicalobject #astrophotographers #sunspots #solarimaging #summer