Capturing Celestial Majesty: Andrew McCarthy’s 90,000 Sunlit Masterpieces

I impulsively acquired a telescope in 2017, reminiscing about the times my father would show me Jupiter and Saturn through his device. I thought, “Why not relive some of those moments, especially since I can now spare a few hundred dollars for essentially a toy?” It was a 10-inch Dobsonian telescope that I assembled in my backyard, aiming it at the most luminous objects I could spot in the sky from the southern skyline – which, by sheer coincidence, turned out to be Jupiter and Saturn. Instantly, I was whisked back to childhood, gazing at these remarkable sights. Then I did what any millennial would: I pulled out my iPhone and attempted to capture a photo of what I witnessed through the telescope. The result wasn’t very impressive, but it sparked my desire to share my observations with the world.

I began to educate myself about astrophotography and the necessary equipment I would require. My pictures gradually improved. Then, during the pandemic, I was dismissed from a tech startup and struggled to find another position. I thought, “What if I attempt to sell the images I’m capturing through the telescope?” Before long, I had individuals assisting me in transforming my hobby into a business, and I was acquiring the skills necessary for more advanced deep space photography, like capturing images of the sun.

The sun’s atmosphere comprises several layers. The outer layer is referred to as the corona. Below that lies a thin plasma layer known as the chromosphere. The visible “surface” of the sun is termed the photosphere, where convection cells the size of Texas rise and fall through the plasma. This convective process is so bright that it overshadows everything else. To capture photographs of the sun, you must block out the photosphere using a meticulously calibrated telescope. Due to the extreme brightness of the photosphere, using the incorrect type could result in blindness and even fire hazards in your home.

This image was comprised of approximately 90,000 individual photographs, taken with a new telescope specifically designed for high-resolution solar imagery. It features an effective 4,000mm focal length, which is ten times more powerful than my prior telescope. Looking through this telescope reveals only a minute area of the sun, necessitating the capture of thousands of photos in rapid succession. With assistance from another astrophotographer, Jason Guenzel, I utilized specialized software to combine these into one uniquely captivating image.

The sun experiences phases of both low and high activity. This image depicts a low activity period. A notable feature is that if you observe the 1 o’clock position, you can spot a colossal plasma tornado approximately 14 Earths tall, which fortuitously was occurring at that moment.

I am more than willing to photograph a variety of subjects in the sky, ranging from the planets within our solar system to the moon, as well as satellites and rockets. Recently, I captured my highest resolution image of a comet. I’ve recorded nebulas showcasing the birth of new stars and solar systems. Currently, I’m focusing on obtaining a high-resolution photograph of the Andromeda galaxy, our neighboring galaxy. This task is intricate and requires hundreds of hours of effort.

Whenever I share my images on Instagram and my website, they tend to gain viral attention, as my perspective offers a distinct view of our skies. I’m not a scientist; I’m an artist. My goal is to present things in a manner that makes people stop and exclaim: “Wow, the sun looks truly remarkable here.” The thrill doesn’t stem from the reactions in the scientific community, but from the excitement among individuals who usually overlook space or science; those who might save my images as their wallpapers, and reflect on our existence in the cosmos. We need to motivate young minds to ponder space, their place on Earth, and how we might one day venture beyond it.

Andrew McCarthy’s latest calendar can be found at cosmicbackground.io

Andrew McCarthy’s CV