VFU "CHERNORIZETS HRABER" COMBINES SCIENCE AND ART IN THE ASTROPHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITION THROUGH THE SECRETS OF THE COSMOS
The Eagle Nebula (M16), constellation Sagittarius, 5 700
Tihomir Todorov, Botevgrad
In search of a bridge between science and art, Varna Free University "Chernorizets Hrabar" will present the astrophotography exhibition Through the Secrets of the Cosmos. It will be opened on September 26, 2023, at 4:00 p.m., in the small art salon of Radio Varna. Photographs by Tikhomir Todorov and Nikola Antonov - astrophotographers who photographed and studied giant nebulae, distant galaxies and star clusters, hidden from the human eye but contributing to the understanding of the processes in the universe, will be exhibited.
The exhibition is organized by VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" with the financial support of the Municipality of Varna and with the assistance of the Institute for Physical and Mathematical Research at the university. The event continues the initiative to present the works of Bulgarian astrophotographers, launched in May 2022 in Sofia. Students of VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" are looking forward to upcoming schools in astronomy and astrophysics.
Deep Sky
The photographs presented by Tikhomir Todorov and Nikola Antonov emphasize the secrets of the "deep sky". Deep sky in astrophotography are the objects that are located outside the solar system. They are thousands to millions and even billions of light years away from us. Some of the most impressive deep sky structures are nebulae. These are giant gas-dust complexes, clouds ranging in size from tens to hundreds of light-years in diameter, containing mainly hydrogen, helium, oxygen, sulfur and other heavier elements. These clouds very often become the birthing places of new stars and planetary systems similar to our solar system. Our star, the Sun, was also born from such a giant cloud. Different gases in space glow with different light when they hit telescopes and the sensitive photosensors of astrophotographic cameras. Other interesting objects in the deep sky are galaxies, distant megastructures, cities of billions of stars, cosmic gas and dust, which have always impressed us with their unique shapes - spiral, lenticular, elliptical and irregular, often caught in a gravitational dance with other companions in the vast universe, at the heart of which supermassive black holes usually beat.
This distant world is made accessible through the astrophotography exhibition Through the Secrets of Space.
Introducing the astrophotographers
Tihomir Todorov was born in 1968 in Botevgrad. He works as a computer specialist. He is engaged in photography, and since 2015 also in astrophotography. Nikola Antonov was born in 1976 in Sofia. Astronomy has been his passion and hobby since childhood. He works as an IT manager in a medium-sized Bulgarian company, and in his spare time he teaches music and is involved in astronomy and astrophotography. He is a member of the American Association of Variable Star Observers and the Institute for Advanced Physical Research (IAPRI).
Unraveling the secrets of astrophotography
During the opening of the exhibition, Nikola Antonov will share with visitors details about the process of photographing objects from the "deep sky" and will present the specific photographs that will be exhibited.