Quick Links:
From the archives... <Here> is some video of the CNC machine I built in my garage
New! Images from GSSP 2010, July 2010, click <here>
Images from GSSP 2009, June 2009, click <here>
A compendium of images from Willow Springs, January 2007, click <here>
Images from Afton Canyon campground, February 2007, click <here>
Images from Calstar2006!, Click <here>
Images from Calstar 2005, Click <here>
Timelapse sequence of the Deep Impact probe impacting comet 9p/Tempel, click <here>
Images from Shingletown Star Party 2004! Click <here>
A few shots from Imagers Ball 2004. Click <here>
My portable astronomical observatory. Click <here>
Images from Calstar 2003 <here>
Take a look at my work, mostly but not entirely from the 2003 Shingletown Star Party! Click <here>
Check out my astrophotographic 10" LXD55 page! Click <here>
To see a collection of some slightly older mages, click <here>
One of my shots appeared last summer in the Sacramento Bee! Click <here>

To view some older Astrophoto's , Click HERE

M51 - May 2008

Horsehead and Flame nebulas, December 27, 2006

NGC 2174 (Monkey nebula), December 28, 2006

Here are some of my current favourite images:

 

Jupiter AnimationTime laps video of Jupiter, taken March 2004. Images from approximately a 4 hour period showing planet rotation. Celestron C11 on AP900GTO, Logitech Quickcam 3000, Registax2 software.

Bubble Nebula, taken with C11 from downtown Los Gatos. Click it to see full resolution image.

M31 M51 M17
M31 - The great Andromeda Galaxy, Taken Fall 2005. Click on the image to the full resolution object. Messier 51 - the Whirlpool Galaxy, taken in May 2004. Click on the images to see the whole extent. Messier 17 - taken September 2004. Click on the image to see the full resolution version.
Bubble Nebula Rosette nebula Pleaides
Click above to see a recent image of two objects in one frame. The rosette nebula. Taken over two nights in February 2004. Click on the image to see the full resolution version. Messier 45 - The Pleaides, Taken Fall 2005. Click on the image to see the full resolution version.

 

About the author

  Jupiter

  marsmarsmarssaturn  
  Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars taken with Celestron C11, 2X barlow, and modified Logitech 3000 webcam, 2003  

Welcome to Peter Santangeli's web site. My site is mostly about my obsessions: Astronomy, Astrophotography, and perhaps someday a bit about furniture building, house renovation.

I'm one of four founders of a new technology startup called Greenbox Technology. We recently sold our company to Silver Spring Networks. At Silver Spring we are building a new technology to help homeowners understand, manage, and control their electrical and other resource use. It's fun work. Saving the planet, one house at a time.

Until recently I worked at Macromedia Inc., downtown San Francisco, on Macromedia's Flash Media Server product and Macromedia's Breeze Solutions. Prior to that I ran engineering (dev, qa, pgm mgmt, etc) for Flash 5, Flash MX, and various other products at Macromedia. I was one of two managers that ran Flash 4.

m33 About amateur astronomy
Pinwheel Galaxy, Meade 10" LXD55 , SBIG ST-8, winter 2002  

My main hobby for the last 25 years (with a few dormant periods) has been astronomy. Like hobbies such as sailing and golf, it's one of those things than can be all-consuming, and cost as little or as much as you care to spend.

In a sense, my whole life has surrounded astronomy. In the 70's I got into the hobby. As a kid, I found that people were actually taking pictures of objects through their telescopes - that started my interest in photography and the visual arts. At about the same time I read about people actually controlling their telescopes with primitive things called "personal computers". That lead to my begging my father to buy me an early TRS-80, and my getting into computing as well. My 15 year professional career has been all about using computers to create graphics. Meanwhile, my interest in astronomy has only grown.

m8 About astrophotography
M8, Celestron C8, SBIG ST-7, summer 2002  

My particular interests in astronomy quickly lead me to astrophotography. That is, actually taking pictures of objects in the sky. This is a slightly specialized part of the field, and has the advantages of allowing one far more opportunities to tinker with equipment, and the ability to take home souvenirs. Unless otherwise credited, any photo's you see on this web site have been taken by me with my gear.

starqueen About TAC
Starqueen Nebula, ST120 refractor, SBIG ST-7, summer 2002  

Astronomy is more fun with others. Standing out alone in a field with a telescope can be both awkward and strangely unnerving. Over the years, I've tried joining a few astronomy clubs. I'm not really a "joiner" though, and though I was seeking some community, my idea of fun was NOT going to monthly meetings and watching slide shows of somebody's trip to see the african eclipse while eating stale cookies. This is not to put down astronomy clubs... There are many good ones out there, they just aren't my "thing".

Somehow, I stumbled upon a group known as TAC (for The Astronomy Connection). TAC is an interesting new creation of our wired community. It has many of the attributes of a club, providing community and communication, but has no meetings, no membership dues, and no boring slide shows. It consists of a couple of hundred people interested in astronomy ("observing" to the initiated), who communicate completely online. TAC has an email list, and a web site, and a charter, and that's about the whole of its formality. Essentially, we are a bunch of people who like to go out observing together. On any given weekend you can find 10 - 50 of us out somewhere, at some state park where it is dark.

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