Emotional when seeing beautiful space images?

[Moonshane]

I have just been looking at some wonderful images (by Olly as it happens but that's just by way of example) and although I have no intention of going down the imaging route, whenever I look at such images, especially the really high quality ones, I get a spike of emotion, awe, excitement, whatever you want to call it that often makes me laugh out loud/gasp etc.

Presumably, everyone gets this and this is one of the reasons we all do what we do in whatever guise.

I can imagine the (probably sometimes choice) words used to express the emotions of the photographers/imagers when their work begins to appear on screen, be it nebulae, galaxies, lunar or planets.

This thread has been started to gauge other people's view but also to thank the imagers for sharing their work with us.

Cheers!!

[NickK]

I keep hearing "All we are is dust in the wind. Dude." "Dust. Wind. Dude." (Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure when they're conversing with Socrates as he lectures Philosophy) when I see big fields like that.

There's something quite profound, even spooky, how Socrates could arrive at "all we are is dust[galactic matter, pounded by star and planets before it became us] in the wind[that your atoms came close enough together on the universal 'winds' for a brief period in the atoms intergalactic lifetime]"..

[steppenwolf]

I get this exact feeling too when I see an exceptional image - great feeling too!

[John]

I get feelings of that sort then I see superb images as well, especially deep sky ones that show galaxies scattered all over them - I guess it's the feeling called "awe"

There is a piece of film footage that does something similar for me - it's of the Apollo 11 Saturn 5 rocket launching and has no music and no commentary other than the intercom messages from the crew and the cap com. I saw it full screen in an Imax cinema a few years back and actually found myself crying very slightly at the end (embarrassing to admit ). It's just so stupendous

[NGC 1502]

Yes, last Sept at Kelling Heath, when Stephen's Quintet slid into view through my

clubs 16" Dob, I felt a "wow" to think that when the light started it's journey the

Earths land mass was largely in one place.

In the intervening eons of time, continental drift put the land masses where they

are today, and that light just got here.

We observe with our eyes, and our minds too.

Cheers, Ed.

[Macavity]

I find many images truly awe inspiring. Not really into the "self-insignificance" thing, like certain popular astronomers.

Although of dubious origin - DESIDERATA:

You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.

[Catanonia]

The main reason I image and don't observe much.

The feeling when the 1st sub exposure come on screen... WOOOOWWWWW

[reddoss]

For me the excitement I get when I see an image of a nebula or galaxy coming together in Photoshop from all the subs is really quite something.

Also talking of emotion, I remember looking at Saturn for the first time through a 15 inch GE mounted Newtonian when I was 11 years old. I was totally over come by the beauty of the rings!

[ollypenrice]

I'm glad images touch you. They touch me. When I saw Rob's recent Siamese Twins I just sat there chuckling, Oh yesss, Oh yessss...

I see a lot of imagers at work here and love - no but really love - to see their passion playing itself out. I won't name one of my finest friends for fear of embarrassing him but to see him bent over his screen extracting little nuances of subtlety is to watch a fine artist at work and it is a privilege. He does it because he loves it. What can be better than that?

Olly

[Moonshane]

Totally agree Olly and it seems we all do! Not a big surprise really. I think a sense of wonder is what links children and people interested in the natural world / universe with any degree of passion.

it's unfortunate that so many people don't 'get it' and just seem to float along in their lives loving only reality TV and soaps! (families excepted of course). but if they are happy.......who are we to say.

[astroimpulse]

Emotional? For sure

Just today there was a time-lapse vid posted and I sat back and watched it full screen and (coupled with the well chosen soundtrack) it was very emotional. No weeping but could have easily.

The whole universe and all the documented images here is/are just incredible.

[Luke]

WOW!

is what I feel when I see an awesome image. About 5 to 10 minutes of it!

[nightfisher]

i have really had the same emotions at some of the images i have seen, i show some to my girlfriend and she is the same, she adores nebula`s for me its lunar shots and i see some images and it acts as encouragement to work harder at my lunar work, but still early days for me

My genuine praise goes out to the dedicated astro imagers that devote so much time and financial commitment to dso work for others to enjoy