African Science Stars

Thank you @‌rjp_astro on Instagram for sharing your magnificent shot of Messier 106!

"M106!

This one took too far to long to get round to processing. It was also a hard time opening Pixinsight and relying on muscle memory to get the job done. Note to self - process more!

300 x 300s Broadband Lights (25 hours)
120 x 600s Narrowband Lights (20 hours)
45 hours total integration
30 Darks
100 bias
30 flats per session

Captured over 12 nights

Askar 103 APO w/0.8x reducer
ZWO ASI6200MC Pro
Askar 50mm guide scope
ZWO ASI120MM Mini
ZWO EAF
ZWO CAA
ZWO 5 pos EFW
ZWO AM5N
Pegasus Powerbox Advanced
Deep Sky Dad OFP2
Optolong 2" L-Ultimate
Optolong UV/IR

N.I.N.A for image acquisition
PHD2 for guiding
Stacked in DSS
Processed in Pixinsight"

AfNWA-AfAS Seed Funding Call! ✨

Apply for €250–€400 seed funding to support astronomy & STEM outreach activities empowering girls in disadvantaged communities across Africa. 🚀

Have an initiative in mind? Apply now!

🌌 This is the Phantom Galaxy as seen by the James Webb Space Telescope.

Its real name is M74, or NGC 628, a beautiful spiral galaxy about 32 million light-years away in the constellation Pisces.

M74 is almost perfectly face-on from Earth, which makes its spiral structure look unusually clean.

That is why astronomers call it a grand-design spiral galaxy.

Webb observed its heart using MIRI, its Mid-Infrared Instrument, which does not see the galaxy the way our eyes would.

Instead, it reveals warm dust and gas threaded through the spiral arms, exposing the raw material from which new stars are born.

The dark-looking gaps are not empty space.

They are regions where dust, gas and star formation carve the galaxy into glowing lanes and cavities.

At the center, Webb reveals a dense nuclear star cluster, glowing inside the galaxy’s core.

When combined with Hubble’s optical view, the image becomes even richer: Hubble shows young blue stars and pink star-forming regions, while Webb shows the hidden dusty skeleton underneath.

This is not just a pretty spiral.

It is a nearby laboratory for understanding how galaxies turn gas into stars.

A ghostly galaxy, photographed in the invisible light of creation.

📄 IMAGE CREDIT
📌 ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, J. Lee and the PHANGS-JWST Team; ESA/Hubble & NASA, R. Chandar

Calling all learners!

South Africa has never had an official mascot to represent its national space programme. Now, we need YOUR help designing one.

If you're in Grades 8-11 at a registered South African school, or home school, you're eligible to enter. Simply draw your character, write a short explanation of your idea, and submit it through our online portal by midnight on Monday, 14 September 2026. No design experience required!

The winning entry will become SANSA's official public mascot, appearing at schools, events and outreach programmes across the country. There are awesome prizes up for grabs - and better yet, you'll be forever credited as the mascot's original designer.

Enter now by going to https://mascot.sansa.org.za

👇 Tag a learner who should give this a go!

Proudly South African Department of Science,Technology and Innovation SA , SAASTA , DBE SA ,

Human intelligence is not the only form of complex intelligence on Earth. Yet our difficulty in recognising other kinds of minds may influence how we search for life beyond our planet.

Join Dr Lori Marino for Intelligence On and Off Earth, the next talk in our Women of Astrobiology series. A neuroscientist known for her research on intelligence in dolphins and whales, Dr Marino will examine what other species can teach us about recognising extraterrestrial intelligence, and why ethical safeguards should be part of that search.

📅 10 September | 11 PM - UTC
🪐 YouTubeLive: https://www.youtube.com/live/aOaOCF7nh-g?si=7HowG2XinQvM5LAf

Event recap ✨
Partial solar eclipse observation in Casablanca with Steps Into Space Association . 🔭🌞

During the event, attendees participated in a workshop on sunspot formation and used certified glasses and solar-filtered telescopes to safely observe the eclipse.
A successful day dedicated to science education in Morocco. Swipe to see the photos. 📸

Throwing it back to some amazing moments from yesterday’s event in Ifrane, Morocco! 🇲🇦📸

At a children’s camp hosted by the Space Al Fath Association for Education and Development, Dr. Hassan Talibi organized a very special astronomy event. 🔭✨

It was a fantastic turnout with around 40 people joining the event, including visiting parents and their kids. Passed out 30 extra pairs of glasses to folks outside the camp so they wouldn’t miss out on the magic! 🌒❤️

📸 Photo Recap: An Exceptional Partial Solar Eclipse Over Marrakech! 🌒
Yesterday, we were on the scene to cover an unforgettable celestial event over the Red City. Check out our gallery for an exclusive look at the spectacular partial solar eclipse! ✨
A huge credit to the organizations that brought the community together and made this public viewing possible:
* AGM (Atlas Golf Marrakech)
* 3AM (Association of Amateur Astronomers of Marrakech)
* ADSF (Atlas Dark Sky Foundation)
* Oukaimeden Observatory
> Swipe through our coverage to see the eclipse in all its glory!

Did you catch the eclipse yesterday? Let us know what you saw in the comments below! 👇