Brian Ventrudo

About Brian Ventrudo

Brian Ventrudo is a lifelong stargazer, writer, former scientist, and the publisher of Cosmic Pursuits.

IC 4665, the “HI” Star Cluster

June 28, 2026 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Deep Sky

The open star cluster IC 4665 in the constellation Ophiuchus. — The open star cluster IC 4665 in the constellation Ophiuchus (credit: Wikipedia)

One of the best targets for a quick stargazing session this time of year is the pretty but underappreciated open star cluster IC 4665. It’s a snap to find, beautiful to behold, and like most sky sights on Cosmic Pursuits, it’s visible from the northern and southern hemispheres.

IC 4665 is spread out over a full degree, more than twice the diameter of the full Moon, so it looks fainter than its integrated magnitude of 4.7. In dark sky, IC4665 is just barely visible to the unaided eye roughly 1° NE of the star Celebrai in the constellation Ophiuchus. Celebrai, or β (beta) Ophiuchi, is one of the stars in the distinctive asterism called Taurus Poniatowski, the “little bull”. If you’re battling light pollution, you’ll need binoculars to spot the cluster [Read more…] about IC 4665, the “HI” Star Cluster

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Noctilucent Clouds – Marvels of the Mesosphere

May 29, 2026 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Atmospheric Sightings

Noctilucent clouds over the Baltic Sea as viewed from Laboe, Germany. Image credit: Matthias Süßen under Creative Commons BY-SA 4.0.

At higher latitudes, on some midsummer nights, long after the sun has dipped below the horizon, a ghostly silver-blue lacework appears low over the northern horizon. These ethereal wisps are noctilucent clouds — the highest clouds on Earth – and among the most visually striking phenomena in the night sky. Their name comes from the Latin for “night-shining,” and they appear exactly as that: illuminated clouds light shimmering in the dark where no light should be [Read more…] about Noctilucent Clouds – Marvels of the Mesosphere

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A Dazzling New View of the Sombrero Galaxy

April 28, 2026 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Science

Messier 104, nicknamed the Sombrero galaxy, is a popular target for amateur observing and astronomical research. Its recognizable extended halo and dust-filled disk are captured in this image from the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera (DECam) mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) in Chile, a Program of NSF NOIRLab.

The Sombrero Galaxy (Messier 104) offers a fine view for visual observers and imagers. This nearly edge-on spiral galaxy about 30 million light years away in the Virgo galaxy cluster shows a smoky lane of interstellar dust finely etched against a brilliant galactic disk and unusually bright halo. This new image from the Dark Energy Camera on the Victor M. Blanco 4-meter telescope at CTIO in Chile shows an immense halo of stars around the galactic plane along with a loop of stars (lower right), all of which likely came from smaller galaxies gobbled by this big spiral. The galaxy contains some 2,000 globular clusters, nearly twenty times as many as our Milky Way. It’s a beautiful image to behold.

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NEAF 2026 Overview and Recap

April 20, 2026 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Astronomy Equipment

The Northeast Astronomy Forum and Space Expo (NEAF) was held as usual this month at Rockland Community College in Suffern, New York. This forum features exhibits from gear suppliers for amateur astronomers from around the world and offers stargazers a chance to see the latest tools and mingle in a convivial atmosphere just as spring and warmer weather arrives. Many would like to go, but not everyone can manage the trip. But Luca Bartek (Space Koala) produced two excellent videos in which she tours the exhibition and talks to astro-vendors about their latest offering. Both of her videos below capture the highlights of Day 1 and Day 2 of the show…
[Read more…] about NEAF 2026 Overview and Recap

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If You Could Have Only One Reflector…

March 15, 2026 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Astronomy Equipment

In a previous video, Ed Ting discussed what refractor he would have if he could have only one refractor. In this follow-up, he turns to a discussion of reflectors. These telescopes, of course, have more varied designs than refractors and offer the potential for far more aperture which enables brighter images and higher resolution. What does Ed choose? Well, it’s a bit of a head scratcher and one you can’t buy anymore. But his reasoning is well worth following in this enjoyable video.

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