Planetary Spacecraft    Mars Probe Phobos-Grunt

The first image (left) of Marsmoon probe Phobos-Grunt stuck in Earth orbit,  captured on November 29, 2011 with a videocamera at the eyepiece of a manually tracked 0.25 meter telescope. Rocket burns to send the spacecraft on course to Mars failed and Phobos-Grunt was left in a parking orbit around the Earth.  The spacecraft reentered finally on January 15, 2012 over the Pacific Ocean.  It was an attempted sample return mission to Marsmoon Phobos.

Spaceflight Experiments    Solar Sail Nanosail-D2

Nanosail D2 was NASA's first experimental Solar Sail. This sequence of the just 3 meters wide sail was captured on May 24, 2011 with a videocamera attached to the eyepiece of a manually tracked 0.25 meter telescope.  The sequence shows the changing viewing angle during the pass and the shape and structure of the sail while it orbits the Earth. Image  right: NanoSail-D2 ground deployment test (image credit: NASA/MSFC).    Image publication in NASA research document ( Page 13)

Space Debris  in Earth Orbit    Various

Pioneering imagery of space debris in Earth orbit such as tumbling rocket stages, solar panel covers and malfunctioning satellites. Imaging with manually tracked 0.25 meter telescope. Top left:  Tumbling SpaceX Dragon solar panel cover after launch, passing over Europe,  April, 9, 2016.   Bottom left & bottom mid: Tumbling Egyptsat rocket, June 24, 2014.   Top mid & right: Tumbling Spekr-R rocket, August 1, 2011.

Starlink Satellites   in Operational Orbit

Starlink satellites in their operational orbits of around 550 km are small, dim objects. The size of the satellite bus as seen in these images is only about 1.4 x 2.8 meters. The solar arrays are normally not visible in operational orbit as intended by the brightness mitigation attitude. The image of Starlink-3933 is a rare exception were we can see the so-called 'Shark-Fin Configuration'.  Sometimes, a glimpse of the solar array can be visible, but faint. The images of Starlink-3202 and 3252 show how the satellites  usually look in operational orbit. Images top right show similarity in details visible taken in images of a Starlink satellite V1.5 bus in operational orbit in July and December 2022. Images are taken using a manually tracked 0.25 meter telescope, adapted for tracking dim objects.

Unmanned Space Missions    X37B Space Plane

Left: This image of the OTV-5, an X37B unmanned space plane over the Netherlands was taken on July 2, 2019 and published worldwide. The X37B is not bigger then a general sports plane but orbits the Earth. Right: The ISS module Nauka after launch flies autonomously to the Space Station after a 14 year delay. Taken July 22, 2021. All images taken with a manually tracked 0.25 meter telescope.  See also R. Vandebergh's   images of the former ISS cargocraft ATV on the ESA website

Manned Space Missions    Astronaut in a Spacewalk

Left: Color image of Spaceshuttle Discovery  STS-131 coming from the ISS on the way home, passing over The Netherlands, taken April 19, 2010. Some exotic details are visible like the NASA logo with its typical blue color and the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics module in the open Payload Bay.  Right: Astronaut Steve Bowen in a spacewalk (EVA) outside the ISS during the STS-133 mission on March 2, 2011. In this image, the astronaut is attached to the Canadarm-2 and positioned near the outer edge of the European Columbus module. All images are taken using a manually tracked 0.25 meter telescope.