Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies
banner
palomarskies.bsky.social
Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies
@palomarskies.bsky.social
Associate professor of astronomy at Palomar College, user of smart telescopes. 🔭 Blog: http://visiblesuns.blogspot.com/
I am thankful for the cosmos. Here an image from last night. It is the galaxy known as NGC 55. It’s a member of the Local Group and located about 6.5 million light years away in the direction of the constellation of Sculptor. 🔭
November 27, 2025 at 3:46 PM
From The Hobbit:
"The stars are in blossom, the moon is in flower,
And bright are the windows of Night in her tower."
Images: M45, the Pleiades and tonight's waxing crescent Moon. 🔭
November 26, 2025 at 3:42 AM
The irresistible beauty that is Messier 42, the Orion Nebula. 🔭
November 25, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Busy bees in the backyard.
November 25, 2025 at 6:27 PM
Here's an image from last night of Messier 74, a spiral galaxy located about 32 million light years away in the direction of the constellation of Pisces. 🔭
November 24, 2025 at 11:48 PM
Nice lava action at Kilauea right now. Watch it here: www.youtube.com/live/BqmpkUd...
November 24, 2025 at 3:46 AM
This morning I was up before sunrise. It was surprisingly clear, so I took out my telescope to catch 3I/ATLAS. I let it thermalize, turned it on, and had just 1 one minute of observing it before it clouded up. Hopefully, I'll have better weather soon. It's the fuzzy spot at the center of the image.🔭
November 20, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Today is Geography/ GIS day at the college. I am here (at left) to present an opposing viewpoint.
November 19, 2025 at 9:41 PM
The globe in the classroom where I teach likes Australia so much that it names it twice.
November 19, 2025 at 4:01 AM
There was a nice rainbow on the to work this morning. Not quite as good by the time I parked but still an enjoyable sight.
November 18, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Round one of this storm is done and it gave us more total rain than we had in all April through October.
November 16, 2025 at 8:22 PM
I just finished reading This Way Up - When Maps Go Wrong, a fun snarky book about maps and am now on to Chris Hadfield’s novel Final Orbit. #booksky
November 15, 2025 at 8:01 PM
🖖 One of my astronomy students got me a vintage Star Trek: The Next Generation com badge pin, which makes me very happy.
November 14, 2025 at 10:33 PM
A visitor to the homestead this morning.
November 14, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Lots of clouds and rain in the forecast for the foreseeable future, so here's an image from last weekend of NGC 288, a globular star cluster located nearly 30,000 light years from Earth. 🔭
November 14, 2025 at 3:15 AM
Valley Center, California. 8:08 pm PST.
November 12, 2025 at 5:24 AM
More red glow from 33 degrees north.
November 12, 2025 at 4:15 AM
Northern lights? Maybe.
November 12, 2025 at 3:48 AM
That fuzzy dot at the center of the image is the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS as captured from my backyard this morning. 🔭
November 11, 2025 at 5:15 PM
In between observing comets this morning I did manage to catch the Moon in its waning gibbous phase. 🔭
November 10, 2025 at 12:57 AM
I was up early this morning to catch two comets. The first was C/2025 K1 (ATLAS), a nice telescopic comet currently in Leo. The 2nd was the not-a-spaceship interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS. It's the fuzzy dot at the center which I caught just over the trees as twilight was coming on. 🔭
November 9, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Last night at the planetarium one of our regulars gave me this old tie tack that had belonged to his dad. I recognized it immediately. It is of Telstar, the world’s first communications satellite. Telstar 1 was launched several months before I was born.
November 9, 2025 at 12:44 AM
Nice sunspots today - 7 November 2025. 🔭
November 7, 2025 at 7:40 PM
I voted by mail weeks ago but am proudly wearing my I Voted sticker today.
November 4, 2025 at 9:28 PM
🔭 Tonight's Moon is nearly full. It's 97.2% illuminated.
November 4, 2025 at 4:26 AM