THE
PRESENTERS
NEAIC brings you best and most renowned astro-imagers that the industry has to offer. Learn techniques and secrets from the most successful and acclaimed imagers.
America's Premier Astro
Imaging Conference
Northeast
Astro-Imaging
Conference
NEAIC
Images by Rob Gendler
Warren Keller
Warren Keller is an official PixInsight ambassador, he has been an educator and author in the field of image processing since 2006. Along the journey, he has written two books and many articles,
produced video tutorial series for several outlets, served on the board of The Advanced Imaging Conference, and ran two SWAP imaging
Inside PixInsight Broadband:
Parts 1 & 2
conferences in Tucson. He's also been a consultant to Celestron and Diffraction Ltd., and a representative of Atik and QSI camera’s. A part-time musician, Warren continues to enjoy processing and teaching the art and science of astrophotography
to others via MasterofPixInsight.com.
Talk Description: Inside PixInsight Broadband
Four Meters and Counting Ron has been using a 14” Celestron Edge HD telescope for deep-sky imaging since summer 2023. With a whopping 3,912 mm focal length, this light bucket can pull in some deep-sky targets that appear very small on the sky. What’s more, despite having a “slow” f/11 focal ratio, this imaging system seems to accumulate photons very quickly using the latest CMOS cameras, which are highly efficient,
sensitive, and have low readout noise. In this presentation, Ron will talk about some of the challenges and opportunities of using this system in a backyard observatory. In the process, he’ll discuss sampling theory and image scale. Of course, the talk will also include many of the strange and fascinating objects revealed by this 4m focal length imaging system.
Alex Gorbachev
Building Tydirium - Designing a Custom Astronomy Trailer
Alex worked on solar adaptive optics in a physics lab in the 1980s, changing to an IT career in the 1990s. In 2013 Alex bought his first telescope, which began a lifelong passion for the magic of Astro imaging and visual observing.
Alex is active in deep space, planetary, and solar imaging and is a member of the Northern Virginia Astronomy Club, and volunteers with NOVAC’s Almost Heaven Star Party, as well as the Smithsonian Institution’s outreach programs.
Professionally, Alex owns a company that designs open source data and
software solutions. He lives in a Bortle 7 suburb of Washington DC, with his family. His other hobbies are coffee roasting and extraction, 3D design.
Talk Description: Building Tydirium - Designing a Custom Astronomy Trailer
For those of us living in urban and suburban neighborhoods, a truly dark sky can feel like a distant dream. To bridge that gap, I’ve combined years of research, hands-on field experience, and modern materials to create a dedicated astronomy trailer with a 5kVa powerplant. This design prioritizes mobility, affordability, versatility, and reliability.
While many options exist for astronomy trailers and RVs, they are rarely discussed in comprehensive detail.
In this session, I’ll share guiding principles, reference materials, and the journey behind my completed project— the Tydirium Trailer.
In this session, Alex Gorbachev will:
• Discuss the pros and cons of various trailer designs
• Electrical system design and implementation
• Discuss trailer modifications for safe travel and rapid deployment
• Cover special considerations for towing with electric vehicles ( I tow with a Model X )
• Address comfort essentials: sleep, food, and heating
• (If time permits) Touch on automation for deep space and planetary imagingt
Luca Bartek
Luca Bartek is an IT professional working in the banking sector in Switzerland. Though she originally trained as a medicinal chemist, she
transitioned to information technology early in her career and also completed her education with an MBA. In her free time, she is fully dedicated to
Are Fast Telescopes Really Better? - Demystifying Astrographs
astrophotography, a passion she has pursued since buying her first telescope in 2020 after a lifetime of being fascinated by the night sky.
Without a permanent observatory, she prefers to travel to the Swiss
Alps, camping in her car while capturing the night sky with multiple
telescopes. She is an active member of various astronomy associations,
serving on the board of the Swiss Astrophotographers’ Association and
as a member of the Hungarian Astrophotographers’ Association (from her home country). She also shares her knowledge on image processing and astrophotography gear through her YouTube channel, The Space Koala.
Talk Description No. 1: Are Fast Telescopes Really Better? - Demystifying Astrographs
Sometimes an f/11 SCT is actually “faster” than an F/2 RASA. The idea that a lower focal ratio means a telescope is always “faster” is one of the most misunderstood concepts in astrophotography - fast astrographs are powerful, but this statement is not always true.
This presentation will break down why aperture—not focal ratio—determines how much light a telescope gathers and why focal ratio alone does not dictate imaging speed. We will highlight and analyze all factors that should be considered when deciding what instrument is the best for a given project.
Talk Description No. 2: Taking PixInsight WBPP to the Next Level Using the Event and Pipeline Builder Scripts
Weighted Batch Preprocessing (WBPP) is the standard tool for deep-sky image calibration, but with a few advanced techniques, it can be customized far beyond its default capabilities. Many of these options are not widely documented, yet they allow for complete control over the preprocessing workflow.
This talk will introduce the Pipeline Builder function and event scripts in WBPP, showing how they can be used to automate and refine preprocessing. Through practical examples, attendees will see how these tools unlock new flexibility, making WBPP an even more powerful tool for astrophotographers.
Dr. Christian Sasse
"StarPx”: Your Gateway to Fun and Creative Astro-Image Processing
Dr. Sasse’s passion encompasses both eagle photography and astronomy. His academic background as an electrical engineer and physicistparticularly his knowledge of optics and the physical properties of light, has shaped his photography. His photography uniquely captures
colors and patterns due to his keen sense of how his objects reflect, refract, diffract and transmit light. Dr. Sasse runs a popular YouTube channel and Facebook page where he uses innovative techniques to bring wildlife and astronomy to his subscribers – an experience that immerses his viewers into an active dialogue during his live events. In 2017 and 2018, Christian’s photography was featured in National Geographic articles, Earth Sky Magazine, and by Nikon USA. Workshop: Astro-image Processing Revolution: Fast, Fun, Fun, Cloud-Based Discover how StarPx makes astro-image processing fast, fun, and focused on creativity! Effortlessly transform your astrophotography with StarPx, the cloud-based tool that handles all the technical steps for you. No advanced skills, sliders, or powerful computer required—just upload your images and let StarPx handle
plate-solving, stacking, and color / gradient correction instantly.
Talk Description: "StarPx”: Your Gateway to Fun and Creative Astro-Image Processing
What You’ll Experience:
• Effortless Automation: Stunning results without technical complexity.
• Always Up to Date: No installations, always ready in the cloud.
• Fast Results: Plate-solving in milliseconds, processing on the fly.
• Creative Freedom: Focus on color and artistry.
Workshop Agenda:
1. Introduction to StarPx.
2. Live demo: From raw data to stunning results.
3. Hands-on session: Process your own datasets (optional) or provided samples.
4. Sharing and feedback.
Requirements:
• Laptop
• Optional: Your astrophotography datasets (FITS, RAW, or TIFF).
Arne Henden
The Art in Photometry
Arne Henden received his doctorate from Indiana University, and subsequently worked for Goddard Space Flight Center, The Ohio State University, and the U.S. Naval Observatory as an instrumentation specialist. He was the Executive Director of the American Association of Variable Stars for the last
decade of his career, retiring to New Hampshire, where he operates many automated telescopes. He is the author of a textbook and several hundred scientific articles and has given lectures worldwide.
Talk Description: The Art in Photometry
The goal in much astroimaging is to make an astronomical object look artistic. The goal in photometry is to take those same images and make them scientifically valuable. Along the way, similar techniques are used to extract the utmost and precise information. What can we learn about the stars sending us that light? Are they young or old; do they have planets that might harbor life; will they explode and danger life on our planet? Sit
back and learn how to measure starlight and answer some of these questions!
Dr. Dennis M. Conti
Introduction to Exoplanet Observing
Dennis Conti is a retired telecommunications professional and an amateur astronomer with a strong interest in exoplanet research. In 2015, he founded the AAVSO’s Exoplanet Section and has continued as section leader since. Dennis is also
on the board of the AAVSO. Dennis has worked closely with the TESS Science Team to qualify AAVSO members as official participants in the TESS ground-based follow-up program, with over 26 AAVSO members now part of that program. He also developed the TESS submission guidelines and the software for detecting false positives, both of which have benefited the entire TESS team. Dennis is co-author of over 30 exoplanet discovery papers and has given presentations at numerous conferences and local astronomy clubs, as well as online exoplanet courses. For his contributions to TESS and other exoplanet activities, Dennis was awarded the American Astronomical Society’s 2020 Chambliss Amateur Astronomy Achievement Award.
Talk Description: Introduction to Exoplanet Observing
The purpose of this workshop is to provide newcomers to exoplanet observing with the background and skills necessary to conduct high quality exoplanet observations. Workshop attendees with astro-imaging experience will find that much of the same equipment used in that endeavor is applicable to exoplanet observing.
The workshop will review the best practices in conducting exoplanet observations, including the minimal set of instrumentation and the steps needed to conduct an exoplanet observation. The workshop will demonstrate how AstroImageJ (AIJ) is used to analyze exoplanet observations. AIJ is an all-in-one (freeware) software package
that is used by both professional and amateur astronomers to analyze exoplanet observations.
“A Practical Guide to Exoplanet Observing,’ the latest version of which can be found at http://astrodennis.com, will be used as the basis for the workshop.
Brian Kloppenborg, PhD
Introduction to Stellar Spectroscopy
Dr. Kloppenborg is an astrophysicist and Executive Director of the AAVSO. He holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Denver and a B.A. in Physics from Hastings College. Previously, he was a Research Scientist at Georgia Tech, leading teams on government programs. Dr. Kloppenborg’s
work, published in journals like Nature and The Astrophysical Journal, focuses on fostering pro-am collaboration and advancing scientific discovery in astronomy.
Talk Description: Introduction to Stellar Spectroscopy
Stellar spectroscopy is a cornerstone of modern astrophysics, offering critical insights into the physical properties, chemical composition, and dynamics of stars. This talk will provide an overview of fundamental spectroscopic principles, including the electromagnetic spectrum, blackbody radiation, and the formation of absorption and emission lines. We will discuss how spectra are used to classify stars, determine their motion through
Doppler shifts, and analyze their atmospheric conditions. The presentation will also cover practical aspects of spectroscopic observations, including instrumentation, data collection, calibration, and reduction techniques. Finally, we will explore key scientific applications, such as studying binary systems, variable stars, and stellar activity, while
highlighting opportunities for amateur astronomers to contribute valuable data to professional research.
John O'Neal
The MLAstro SHG-700 and Altair Astro GP Cap 678m: Introducing a revolution in Solar Amateur
Astronomy.
Magazine, where he writes a recurring article called SOLARACTIVITY. And he is the Solar Eclipse Section Coordinator for the Association of Lunar & Planetary Observers or A.L.P.O and contributes articles to their quarterly publication The Strolling Astronomer. John also serves as an admin for the SOLARACTIVITY Facebook group, which he co-founded
in 2010. He has been a NASA Solar System Ambassador for several years and
has given technical presentations on many astronomical topics over the years in
numerous states across the U.S.A. John currently resides in Statesville, North
Carolina, with his wife, Dorothy and their fur baby on a five-acre ranch, where he spends countless hours in his home observatory shooting the sun and stars.
TALK TITLE: The MLAstro SHG-700 and Altair Astro GP Cap 678m: Introducing a revolution in Solar Amateur Astronomy.
Join John O'Neal, NC Stargazer as he presents a hands- n demonstration and presentation of Minh Truong Nguyen's Digital Solar Spectroheliograph, the MLAstro SHG-700.
This revolutionary new device connects to your refracting telescope up to 700mm in focal length and 4 inches in diameter without any Energy Rejection filters needed. It is a strictly imaging SHG so it also connects to your camera to capture full disc images of the Sun at different user determined wavelengths, such as Hydrogen Alpha, Calcium H & K, Sodium D, Magnesium, Helium & Iron, to name a few. It can also produce stunning coronagraph
style images and magnetograms and display doppler shifts in your images!
The DSHG from MLAstro scans the full disk of the Sun, line by line, at any preset wavelength. This process yields sharp, crisp, incredibly detailed images after some reconstruction and processing in specialized software that can be downloaded to your laptop or pc for free.... Resulting images show better contrast than conventional
etalon images due to the extremely narrow bandwidth of the SHG.
The Digital Spectroheliograph is revolutionizing the tools and techniques we utilize when imaging the Sun and is providing a brighter future for amateur astronomers wanting to do spectroheliography and monochromatic solar imaging.
John O’Neal is a NC Stargazer has been involved in amateur astronomy his entire life. He is an accomplished astrophotograper and solar imager. He is an Associate Editor of Amateur Astronomy
John Hayes
John Hayes, PhD is a retired optical engineer, entrepreneur, and professor with a B.S. in physics and astronomy, a M.S. and Ph.D. in optics from the University of Arizona. His interest in telescopes and astronomy started in elementary school, which
led to a career in the field of optical engineering. He has authored 30 professional papers, articles, book chapters, and presentations in the field of optical testing and holds 14 patents in the fields of optics and atomic force microscopy. In retirement, Dr. Hayes has returned to the hobby of astroimaging, which he does with an ASA600 on a L-600 mount and a GTX130 refractor on a Mach2 mount--both at Obstech in Chile. He has made numerous presentations on the Astro-Imaging Channel, AIC, NEIAC and to numerous other clubs, universities and organizations. He has been recognized with
22 IOTD awards and 2 NASA APODs. He is also an active pilot and flight instructor with jet type ratings and a former regular contributor to Plane and Pilot magazine. As an Adjunct Research Professor of Optics, he enjoys using his technical background to help amateurs explore and advance the state of the art of astro-imaging.
Talk Description: Producing World Class Galaxy Images
In this talk we’ll review the basics of getting the most out of your telescope including sensor choices, optical alignment, guiding, and focusing. We’ll review how aperture, image scale, and seeing contribute to the quality of data that you can produce. Then we’ll turn to processing to look at how to gauge color fidelity, deconvolve your data, set the black point, clean up noise and layer Ha data. Then we’ll look at some tips and tricks to make your images “pop”. The processing tools that we’ll use will be PixInsight and Photoshop. Join us and take your galaxy images to the next level.
Talk Description: The Physics of Dew Prevention
It seems that everyone has their own ideas about how to prevent dew but do you really understand how to maximize dew prevention and still get good image data? In this talk, we go over the difference between dew and frost and examine the 3 mechanisms of heat exchange to understand why condensation happens—and various ways to prevent it. Then we’ll look at specific strategies for minimizing dew while maintaining image
quality. We’ll see why some of the most popular methods are the worst for image quality and we’ll show you what works well…and why! We’ll make this a really fun session with some surprising answers and solid recommendations. You will leave this talk with a deeper understanding of how to best keep your gear dry when everything else is getting soaked.
Producing World Class Galaxy Images / The Physics
of Dew Prevention
Nico Carver
Introduction to Astrophotography -
a 4 Part Series
Nico Carver is a dedicated deep-sky astrophotographer with a knack for teaching people complex software. He has taught Photoshop professionally in the past at the University-level and in nationally-attended
webinars. After discovering astrophotography in 2017, it quickly became an obsession. From 2019-2022, he worked at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics where he helped preserve the early history of astrophotography through Project PHaEDRA. Starting in 2023, he went full-time with astrophotography education and his primary mission is helping beginners get started with deep sky astrophotography.
Nico’s favorite objects to photograph are nebulae.
In this four-part series, Nico will deliver an overview and introduction to astronomical imaging, with a specific focus on photographing deep sky objects like nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies. These talks will be designed for complete beginners,
Talk Description 1: Introduction to Astrophotography: Overview, Types of Astrophotography, Gear
This talk will start with an overview of amateur astrophotography and explore the different types from solar to milky way to deep sky. We will also discuss some of the common gear used for the different types of astrophotography, including minimal setups for beginners.
Talk Description 2: Introduction to Astrophotography: How to Take Photos of Deep Sky Objects
In this session we will run through the fundamentals of capturing photos of deep sky objects. Special attention
will be paid to topics that beginners often struggle with like focusing and polar alignment of equatorial mounts.
Talk Description 3: Introduction to Astrophotography: Planning, Creativity, Intro to Processing
Both planning and processing an astrophoto involve lots of creative decisions. In this session, Nico will lead
participants through a live demo of the whole process showing off some of the different tools and software he
uses.
Talk Description 4: Introduction to Astrophotography: Processing Workflows & Tips, Printing, Q&A
The final session will focus on post-processing workflows, printing, and leave lots of time for open discussion and Q&A
Jon Talbot
Leveraging New Generation CMOS Technology
Jon Talbot is a retired Air Force Hurricane Hunter and self-taught Astrophotographer who is an
expert using new CMOS technology. He has
been active in astrophotography and teaching
image processing since 2001.
Talk #1 Description: Leveraging New Generation CMOS Technology
This presentation will be about my transition from CCD to CMOS technology, what I learned in the transition and more importantly how to leverage this new technology to optimize your dark sky time. Are you thinking of purchasing your first astronomical CMOS camera or maybe you're thinking of replacing your current CCD camera with a new CMOS camera? Recent CMOS technology has come a long way. In fact, it is now surpassing popular CCD’s in most all areas. In 2020, I transitioned from using Astronomical CCD’s to CMOS. My presentation will discuss a short comparison between CCD’s and CMOS cameras, how one can leverage this new technology, and techniques one can use to optimize your precious dark sky time.
Talk #2 Description: Pro/AM collaboration: Adventures in Imaging the Unknown
This presentation will be about how amateur imagers can help professional astronomers
Talk Description Summary:
Many times, amateur astronomers image very faint and unusual targets. These targets are
sometimes the same targets professional astronomers are studying. Competition in getting time on a professional telescope is fierce. So why not help professional astronomers out by offering your data to them. Many professional astronomers specialize is certain parts of astronomy, like planetary nebula, cataclysmic variable stars, and super nova remnants, etc. If you image some of these objects and find something interesting my bet is that there are professionals out there that would be thrilled to look at your data and sometime publish papers with your images. This talk is how I got into this sort of the imaging that has sometimes gathered the attention of professionals.
Richard S. Wright Jr.
Guiding Needs to Die
Richard S. Wright Jr. is a contributing editor for Sky & Telescope magazine and has been an amateur astronomer for most of his life. Professionally, Richard is a computer graphics and imaging specialist and currently works full time at LunarG, Inc. on the worlds most advanced GPU and
graphics software technologies. He’s also worked on Starry Night, Sky Safari, and with Software Bisque for nearly two decades. He continues to do consulting work and product development in the astronomy industry under the guise of Starstone Software & Imaging. He is currently the lead application software developer for the world’s first “Smart Eyepiece” project, a collaboration between him, Simulation Curriculum, and Pegasus Astro. You can visit Richard’s gallery and blog at www.eveningshow.com
Talk Title: Guiding Needs to Die
Why do we do autoguiding? We think we know the answer to that question, but the time has come to re-evaluate that answer. Both optics and camera sensor technology has come a long way since the days of glass plates and chemical emulsions. We don’t still bang rocks together to make fire, and perhaps it’s time to let go of this 100-year-old
relic of astrophotography. In this talk, Richard will review the basics of image stacking, both why it works, and what its limitations are, and how those limitations are melting away. How much time does the autoguider have left? It’s getting close to that time to call in its family and friends… Come and find out why.
DR. RON BRECHER
Four Meters and Counting
Ron Brecher (http://astrodoc.ca/) has been an avid amateur astronomer for more then 25 years. His deep-sky, Sun and Moon images and articles are regularly featured in magazines, scientific journals, CD covers, websites, calendars and more.
Ron uses PixInsight for processing his deep-sky shots, imaging mostly from his home observatory north of Guelph, Ontario. Ron writes regularly for Sky & Telescope and other publications. He is the Technical Reviewer for both editions of Warren Keller’s, Inside PixInsight, published by Springer. Ron offers private tutoring online, and teams up with Warren Keller (ip4ap.com) to teach 2- and 3-day dep-sky image processing workshops. Ron is a regular speaker at star parties and conferences in the U.S. and Canada.
Ron and his wife Gail live under Bortle 4 skies with two dogs, two cats and two kids in university. In “real life,” Ron holds a PhD is a board-certified toxicologist with more than 30 years’ consulting experience, specializing in risk assessment and risk communication. To round things out, he plays guitar and sings lead vocals in the R&B band The Exceptions.
Talk Title:
Four Meters and Counting
Ron has been using a 14” Celestron Edge HD telescope for deep-sky imaging since
summer 2023. With a whopping 3,912 mm focal length, this light bucket can pull in some deep-sky targets that appear very small on the sky. What’s more, despite having a “slow” f/11 focal ratio, this imaging system seems to accumulate photons very quickly using the latest CMOS cameras, which are highly efficient, sensitive, and have low readout noise. In this presentation, Ron will talk about some of the challenges and opportunities of using this system in a backyard observatory. In the process, he’ll discuss sampling theory and
image scale. Of course, the talk will also include many of the strange and fascinating objects revealed by this 4m focal length imaging system.
Khantil Desai
A Software Tool to Prevent Imaging when Satellites Cross Telescopes’ Field of View
Khantil Desai is a Machine Learning Scientist at Xero while concurrently pursuing a Master of Computer Engineering from the University of Toronto. He completed his Bachelor of Computer
Engineering from the University of Toronto. His current research primarily focusses on developing software for the automated detection of satellite interference in visual telescopes.
Talk Title: A Software Tool to Prevent Imaging when Satellites Cross
Telescopes’ Field of View
Authors: Khantil Desai, Francis Dawson, University of Toronto,
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Satellites play a crucial role in telecommunications, with companies like
Starlink and Amazon's Project Kuiper launching many satellites into orbit. However, satellites reflect sunlight and can leave visual trails that interfere with ground-based astronomical imaging. The current state-of-the art is to use signal processing algorithms (median filter) to remove the satellite artifacts or take a larger number of
images than is required and reject contaminated images. Processing the images degrades the quality of the final image if the signal to noise ratio of the astronomical feature is weak whereas taking additional images extends an observation session and consumes valuable resources.
In this project we are developing a Python-based software package that predicts satellite crossings in a telescope’s field of view (FOV) over a one night observing session. The software algorithm prevents the imaging device from acquiring images when satellites are about to cross the FOV. Times during which satellites cross the FOV are obtained using real-time satellite position data from celestrak.com, and custom developed software. This
information is stored in an array and can then be integrated within a telescope automation program such as N.I.N.A, using a plugin.
The presentation will provide a high-level overview of the algorithms required to predict when satellites cross the telescopes’ field of view.
Timothy Hutchison
Combining Narrow Band Images to Produce More Natural Results
Tim Hutchison attended Gannon University in Erie Pennsylvania where he earned his bachelor’s in electrical engineering. His early career was spent as a control systems engineer, developing numerous control systems for centrifugal pumping
stations for natural gas pipeline applications. In 1994 Tim joined his father in starting SoftWriters, Inc., where they eventually focused on creating automation software for the long-term care pharmacy industry. As the creative designer and head of product development, Tim led SoftWriters to become the largest supplier of software to the LTC pharmacy space in the US. Tim retired from SWI in 2018 after serving as the CEO for 18 years. Always an avid photographer, Tim looked for a new challenge in the area of astrophotography. He designed and built a completely automated backyard observatory, as well as automating another astroimaging setup at the Sierra Remote Observatories. Tim developed an imaging scheduler application that completely automates target selection and acquisition, making the collection of data a completely automated operation. Tim concentrates primarily on photographing deep space objects, as well as solar imaging. He is a regular on The Astro Imaging Channel where he also is a frequent presenter. Tim lives in Pittsburgh, PA with his wife and 2 sons.
Talk Description: Typically, narrow band images of nebulae are combined using a mapped palette that, while striking, does not reflect the natural look of emission nebulae. In this session, Tim will explore the true “color” of emission nebulae, and discuss how those colors can be represented using computer monitors and printers. Tim will then demonstrate a technique for combining images that takes advantage of that “more natural” color mapping using both PixInsight and PhotoShop.
Peter Bealo
The Many Ways an Amateur Astronomer can Become Involved in Citizen Science
Peter Bealo has been involved in amateur astronomy for over 55 years. He is a Board
member of AAVSO, a SIG leader at AAVSO, a regular variable star imager with over 40,000 data
points in AAVSO's database, the Executive Secretary of the Antique Telescope Society and former President of the Amateur Telescope Makers of Boston. Professionally Peter spent his career in Engineering and Product and Project Management in the semiconductor and semiconductor capital equipment industries. He is now happily retired and volunteering locally.
Talk Title: The Many Ways an Amateur Astronomer can Become Involved in Citizen Science
Summary: As amateur astronomers with some observing and imaging equipment and knowledge we offer much to the professional astronomical community. This talk will summarize many of the programs we can contribute to, what we can contribute and what is done with our contributions.