Cosmic dust in the city project

 My Cosmic dust in the city project pack has arrived. 

Phials, plastic bags, magnet, fine sieve, petri dish, instructions and more 

May the gutter sweeping begin! Really looking forward to this. 

Cosmic dust in the city Project University of Plymouth

New to my blog? You can drop in here first to learn more about me and the blog: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/p/welcome-to-my-astronomy-and.html

As the blog grows, I want it to stay easy to navigate. To help with that, I’ve put together a simple guide that explains how everything is arranged and how to find things quickly:

• Want to Find Something Quickly on My Blog? https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/want-to-find-something-quickly-on-my.html

You’ll also see labels, categories, and series developing over time so you can follow particular themes - whether that’s equipment, observing sessions, learning logs, or location-based posts. Anyway, welcome and enjoy. I hope ytou find something useful.  Steve  

The Cosmic dust in the City Project University of Plymouth - Citizen science in action 

Prof. Stephen Grimes and Research Assistant Jenny Wiggins

I have signed up to participating in a citizen science project - searching for Micro-meterorites. 

And I think it is quite exciting. 

I first heard about the project when Stephen did a presentation to the Plymouth Astronomicial Society recently. It was fascinating. 

You can read all about the project here: https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/public-engagement-at-plymouth/cosmic-dust-in-the-city

What are Micro-meteorites I hear you all ask? 

Goiod question - short answer - tiny extraterrestial particles that pass through the Earth's atmosphere and settle on the planet surface. They orginate from asteroids and comets and around 20,000 to 40,000 tonnes of this comsic dust arrives annually; around 5,200 tonnes reaching the surface - 80% of it from comets and 20% from asteroids. 

A micro meteroite has an average diameter of 0.25mm. Tiny! Really tiny! 

Chemically and texturally, they can tell us much about the formation and evolution of the early Solar System, the history of the Earth's atmosphere, comet and asteroid composition and finally, long-term climate processes including atmospheric CO2 levels. 

More about the project

It aims to engage schools, families, amateur scientists and community groups in and around Plymouth - with hands on planetary science activities and training of citizen scientists to collect and identify urban micrometeriorites using simple equipment. A regional and national archive of Micrometeorites will be developed as well. 

So what will I be doing? 

I will be gently sweeping out my roof gutters to collect the dust and dirt in them. When it has dried out, I will use a strong magnet to lift out any micrometeorites which I will then send off to the university for examination. If there are any - I will be able to go up to the University lab and see my micrometeorites under a microscope at some point.  

This is so exciting and cool! I am awaiting my citizen science kit and can't wait to get started. 

Find out more about the project using the link above.  I will keep you updated with my progress.

Thank you Stephen and Jenny for such an exciting citizen science project! 

Some sessions give you diamonds. Others, merely gravel! The ups and downs of milky way astrophotography!

 New to my blog? You can drop in here first to learn more about me and the blog: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/p/welcome-to-my-astronomy-and.html

As the blog grows, I want it to stay easy to navigate. To help with that, I’ve put together a simple guide that explains how everything is arranged and how to find things quickly:

• Want to Find Something Quickly on My Blog? https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/want-to-find-something-quickly-on-my.html

You’ll also see labels, categories, and series developing over time so you can follow particular themes - whether that’s equipment, observing sessions, learning logs, or location-based posts. Anyway, welcome and enjoy. I hope ytou find something useful.  Steve 

Milky Way Editing Workflow: What I Managed to Salvage From a Tough Night at Durdle Door

“Not every Milky Way session gives you diamonds — sometimes you come home with gravel. Last week at Durdle Door was one of those nights! Here, in today’s post, I show how I salvaged the data, blended the sky and landscape in Affinity Photo, and squeezed something usable out of a tough session. Clear skies… eventually!”

 

Last week I returned to Durdle Door for my second Milky Way session of 2026 — and if you’ve read the trip report, you’ll know it was a night that fought me every step of the way. Between wind, moon glow, and a restless tripod, the data I brought home was… well, let’s call it “character‑building.” Sometimes astrophotography hands you diamonds; sometimes it hands you gravel. This time, I came home with a bucket of gravel.

Still, even a difficult session has value. You learn, you adapt, and you squeeze every last drop out of the data you did manage to capture. That’s what this post is about: how I processed the images, what worked, and how I blended the sky and landscape using Affinity Photo.

Read the full story of my Durdle Door Milky Way shoot here: My Second Milky Way Session of 2026 at Durdle Door
https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2026/05/my-second-milky-way-session-of-2026.html

And if you want the detailed version of my milky way editing workflow, this earlier guide covers the foundations: For the full breakdown of my workflow, see my Milky Way Editing Tutorial (Affinity Photo + Sequator).
https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/editing-tutorial-guide-to-how-i-post.html

 Below is the updated, slightly refined workflow I used for this session.

 

My Milky Way Editing Workflow (2026 Update)

1. Stacking the Sky Images — Twice

For each night, I created two separate stacks:

• one in Sequator
• one in Affinity Photo

I always do this. Some nights Sequator produces a cleaner, more natural result; other nights Affinity Photo pulls ahead. It’s a bit like developing film in two different darkrooms — you never know which one will coax out the best detail until you compare them side by side.

Each program produced one stacked sky image for Night One and one for Night Two.

 

Lots to be please about in the landscape bit - most of it is well lit and in focus. 

The blur of breaking waves is nice. 

Issues? The stark transition line at horizon; the mismatching tone and colouring between landscape and sky. The sky is too blue and not well defined. 

2. Preparing the Landscape Images

I selected a handful of blue hour and midnight hour landscape shots and opened them in Affinity Photo’s Develop Persona for basic RAW adjustments.

Key steps:

• neutralised the pink cast caused by my astro‑modified camera
• applied the same colour‑correction method described in my earlier workflow post
• exported each landscape frame as a TIFF

These TIFFs become the “foreground plates” for the final composite.

 

3. Preparing the Stacked Sky Images

The stacked skies went through the same initial treatment:

• colour‑neutralising the astro‑mod magenta tint
• adjusting white balance for a clean, natural starting point
• exporting as TIFFs ready for blending

At this stage, both sky and landscape images are “pre‑balanced” so they play nicely together later.

 

Version two - the landscape is too dark now! 

This post editing malarkey is quite challenging to grasp! 

How I Replace the Sky in Affinity Photo

This is the part people ask me about most often, so here’s the exact process I use — clean, repeatable, and reliable-ish – if you have some basic photo processing skills.

Step‑by‑step sky replacement workflow

1. Select the sky
   Use the Select Brush Tool to paint over the sky area.
   Click Refine and brush along the horizon to improve the transition.
2. Invert the selection
   Now the landscape is selected instead of the sky.
3. Create a mask
   With the landscape layer highlighted, click the Mask Layer icon.
   The sky should now disappear.
4. Deselect
5. Add the sky image
   Paste your sky TIFF into the document.
6. Move the sky layer below the landscape layer
   This places the sky “behind” the masked foreground.
7. Position the sky
   Use the Move Tool.
   I temporarily set the sky layer to 75% opacity so I can align it precisely.

 

Blending the Horizon for Realism

This is where the magic happens — the difference between a believable composite and one that looks like two photos glued together.

Softening the transition

• Select the landscape mask
• Use a soft black brush at 10–20% opacity
• Gently paint along the horizon to soften the edge
• If the transition is still too harsh, apply a 1–3px Gaussian Blur to the mask

As my wife, who makes her own clothes, would say “Think of this step as feathering two pieces of fabric together until the seam disappears.”

 

Matching Colour and Light Between Sky and Foreground

Adjusting the sky

On the sky layer, I typically apply:

• Recolour Adjustment (warmer or cooler depending on the scene)
• Curves Adjustment (to brighten or darken specific areas)
• HSL Adjustment (to reduce saturation if needed)

For the Milky Way:

• background sky → slightly cooler, bluer hue
• Milky Way core → a touch more magenta

Right‑click each adjustment and choose Mask to Below so it only affects the sky.

I often darken the sky slightly near the horizon — a personal preference, but it adds depth and realism.

 

This one is my favourite - the landscape was taken at midnight. The sky done afterwards with fewer tracked shots at a lower ISO and shutter speed. 

Adjusting the landscape

The goal is to make the foreground feel like it belongs under that sky.

Typical adjustments:

• Curves to darken or cool the landscape
• HSL if colours feel too warm or saturated
• Mask to Below so adjustments apply only to the landscape layer

Finally, I may feather the horizon again with a soft black brush at 10–20% opacity, building up the blend gradually until it feels natural.

 

Final Thoughts

This wasn’t the Milky Way session I hoped for — far from it. But even when the data isn’t great, the workflow still teaches you something. Every failed frame is a stepping stone to the next successful night, and Durdle Door will definitely see me again when the conditions are kinder.

If you’ve got tips, tricks, or your own approach to blending sky and landscape, drop them in the comments. I always credit contributors in future updates and love learning from other people.

Clear skies, stay safe, and keep looking up
— Steve

• Beginner’s Guide: How to Photograph the Milky Way in the UK  https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/02/beginners-guide-to-taking-your-first.html
• How to plan for a milky way photography session: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/08/a-beginners-guide-to-post-editing-your.html

My second milky way session of 2026

 New to my blog? You can drop in here first to learn more about me and the blog: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/p/welcome-to-my-astronomy-and.html

As the blog grows, I want it to stay easy to navigate. To help with that, I’ve put together a simple guide that explains how everything is arranged and how to find things quickly:

• Want to Find Something Quickly on My Blog? https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/want-to-find-something-quickly-on-my.html

You’ll also see labels, categories, and series developing over time so you can follow particular themes - whether that’s equipment, observing sessions, learning logs, or location-based posts. Anyway, welcome and enjoy. I hope ytou find something useful.  Steve 

My Second Milky Way Session of 2026… and It Doesn’t Go Well

My second Milky Way session of 2026… and the universe said “nope”.
Wind, tripod wobble, star trailing moon glow and one very enthusiastic light‑painter down on the beach.
Durdle Door was beautiful — my images, less so.
Plenty of lessons learned from an early‑season astrophotography session

 

You’re probably expecting a triumphant post full of Milky Way images from Wembury. I even teased my first session of 2026 in an earlier post and promised I’d share the photos “soon”: https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2026/04/planning-milky-way-shoot-at-wembury.html

Well… “soon” has turned into “not yet”.
Either the weather has been about as cooperative as a cat at bath time, or I simply haven’t been home.
Sorry!

I will get those Wembury images done - and I’ll post them the moment the universe stops conspiring against me.

Meanwhile… Durdle Door Called

Planning a Milky Way Shoot at Durdle Door

 We took the motorhome over to Dorset for a short break, staying at the holiday park perched on the hill above Durdle Door. It’s one of those places where the view alone makes you feel like you should be holding a mug of tea and contemplating life’s mysteries.

Two nights.
One cliff top.
One iconic limestone arch.
And one astrophotographer (me) trying to wrestle the Milky Way into a frame.

 

Preparation: The Week of Hope

I spent the previous week doing what all astrophotographers do before a big shoot:

• Scouring the internet for inspiration
• Staring at Photopills like it was a crystal ball
• Sorting gear into neat piles
• Convincing myself that this time everything would go smoothly

Photopills gave me a shooting plan for each night. The plan was beautiful. Elegant. Precise.
Reality, as you’ll see, was none of those things.

 

Astrophotography Gear Used for This Session

• Astromodded Canon 800D
• Samyang 14mm f/2
• Sky‑Watcher Star Adventurer 2i
• Benbo Mach 3 carbon fibre tripod
• Two 25,000 mAh powerbanks
• Intervalometer
• Ball head
• MSM green laser pen
• Sky‑Watcher right‑angled viewfinder
• William Optics wedge

Basically: enough kit to make passing hikers assume I was either photographing the cosmos or trying to contact it.

 

Photopills Planning and Location Scouting

The Shooting Plan

• Afternoon recce on day one to scout cliff‑top locations
• Using Photopills AR to line up the Milky Way over the arch
• Returning at blue hour for landscape frames
• Night session from 00:40 to 04:00
• Repeat the whole thing on day two

I’ll share the exact shooting settings in the next post when I present the edited images — or whatever I manage to salvage from the wreckage.

 

Issues on Both Nights (A.K.A. The Universe Laughs)

Let’s just say the conditions were… character‑building.

• Brisk easterly winds (14–25 mph, gusting to 28 mph)
  My tripod shook like it was auditioning for Strictly Come Dancing.
• Exposed cliff‑top site
  Slippy grass, loose gravel, and vegetation hiding the cliff edge.
  Polar alignment required turning my back to the drop — a thrilling experience I don’t recommend.
• Star trailing
  Even with the tracker. Even with weights. Even with me acting as a human windbreak.
• 35% moon
  Casting moonglow across the scene like a cosmic floodlight nobody asked for.
• Milky Way barely above the arch
  Early season problems — the galaxy was basically peeking over the horizon like a shy child.
• Another astrophotographer on the beach light‑painting the arch
  Continuously.
  For hours.
  Much to the despair of the five of us on the cliff top.
• Cold
  Windchill that could freeze enthusiasm itself.
  I wore thermals, a fleece, two jackets… and three hats.
  Yes, three. Don’t judge me.

 

Night Two: A “Safer” Spot… Sort Of

I moved to a more sensible position on the main footpath.
Better footing.
Clearer view of the Milky Way above the Channel.

But the wind had other ideas.

• Northeasterly gusts spilling off the fields
  They pushed the tripod towards the cliff edge.
  I had to stand between the wind and the tripod like a bouncer protecting a VIP.

 

Techniques I Tried to Reduce Star Trailing

• Lower tripod height
• Weighted tripod with my rucksack
• Standing as a human shield
• Shorter shutter speeds + higher ISO

Did it help?
Not really.
But I looked impressively committed.

 

The Results?

Not great.

The Milky Way frames from both nights show trailing, wobble, and some truly unpleasant light gradients.
The kind of gradients that make you sigh, close your laptop, and go make tea.

But — and this is important — I learned loads.
And the blue hour images?
They’re actually pretty decent, and I’ve got several I can work with.

Over the next week or two, I’ll attempt to salvage something from the night‑sky shots.
Any blend I produce probably won’t be pretty…
But that’s part of the fun, isn’t it?
We’ll talk about it, learn from it, and maybe even laugh about it.

Clear skies, stay safe, keep looking up.

Steve

 

My first contact

 Today is a monumentous day in the history of this new blog. 

I made 'first contact'. 

Well, a reader made 'first contact' with me, if we are being accurate.

Tony, from Australia, dropped me an email saying how much he appreciated the blog. He is a beginner to astrophotography and like me, has been spending hours trawling the internet via blogs and YouTube to find out information. 

He was grateful for finding all the information he needed as a beginner in just one place. 

And that is and will always continue to be the main aim of the blog - you can read more about my aims here: 

https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/01/what-is-aim-and-purpose-of-my-new.html

https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/01/a-little-more-about-me-and-why-i-am-in.html

https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/01/welcome-to-my-new-astronomyastrophotogr.html

Anyway, Tony, thanks for taking the time to drop me an email - greatly appreciated - confirmation that it is helpful for beginners and that the blog is fulfilling its aim of helping other beginners.