Stefano Ivan Stinga
@sting1jp.bsky.social
🇮🇹🇯🇵 Italian in Osaka, Japan
🎮 Video game localization
🔭 Independent researcher, astrophotographer
🎮 Video game localization
🔭 Independent researcher, astrophotographer
Full post with details: stinga.jp/sunrise-over...
November 1, 2026 at 7:37 AM
Full post with details: stinga.jp/sunrise-over...
Sunrise over Imbrium: the Moon's sunrise line from Copernicus to Sinus Iridum, 1 gigapixel at 30 m per pixel. Made from Japan's Kaguya (SELENE) map, relit for a Sun just above the horizon. Viewer here:
moon.stinga.jp
Data: ISAS/JAXA · Color: NASA/GSFC/ASU (LRO)
#Moon #Kaguya #Astrophotography
moon.stinga.jp
Data: ISAS/JAXA · Color: NASA/GSFC/ASU (LRO)
#Moon #Kaguya #Astrophotography
Sunrise over Imbrium: explore the Moon at 30 m per pixel
A 1-gigapixel view of the Moon's sunrise line, from Copernicus to Sinus Iridum, made from Japan's Kaguya data. Zoom in.
moon.stinga.jp
November 1, 2026 at 7:35 AM
Sunrise over Imbrium: the Moon's sunrise line from Copernicus to Sinus Iridum, 1 gigapixel at 30 m per pixel. Made from Japan's Kaguya (SELENE) map, relit for a Sun just above the horizon. Viewer here:
moon.stinga.jp
Data: ISAS/JAXA · Color: NASA/GSFC/ASU (LRO)
#Moon #Kaguya #Astrophotography
moon.stinga.jp
Data: ISAS/JAXA · Color: NASA/GSFC/ASU (LRO)
#Moon #Kaguya #Astrophotography
I've released dss-precovery, an open Python tool that finds known distant objects like Quaoar and Eris on old Palomar and UK Schmidt sky-survey plates and measures them against Gaia. Here: Quaoar in 1954, 1982 and 1994.
Code: github.com/Sting1JP/dss-precovery
DOI: doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23805409
Code: github.com/Sting1JP/dss-precovery
DOI: doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23805409
October 30, 2026 at 1:15 PM
I've released dss-precovery, an open Python tool that finds known distant objects like Quaoar and Eris on old Palomar and UK Schmidt sky-survey plates and measures them against Gaia. Here: Quaoar in 1954, 1982 and 1994.
Code: github.com/Sting1JP/dss-precovery
DOI: doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23805409
Code: github.com/Sting1JP/dss-precovery
DOI: doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23805409
JPL's updated orbit, now based on observations going back to 1937, puts ED138 within half an arcsecond of my 1954 positions: an independent confirmation that the pipeline got it right.
I'm now testing the pipeline on other distant objects.
We'll see if anything comes of it!
I'm now testing the pipeline on other distant objects.
We'll see if anything comes of it!
October 30, 2026 at 9:41 AM
JPL's updated orbit, now based on observations going back to 1937, puts ED138 within half an arcsecond of my 1954 positions: an independent confirmation that the pipeline got it right.
I'm now testing the pipeline on other distant objects.
We'll see if anything comes of it!
I'm now testing the pipeline on other distant objects.
We'll see if anything comes of it!
It turned up on two plates from 3 April 1954, right on its predicted track. An independent re-measurement agreed within 0.2".
When I contacted the Minor Planet Center, I learned that others had already submitted measurements of the same plates.
When I contacted the Minor Planet Center, I learned that others had already submitted measurements of the same plates.
October 30, 2026 at 9:41 AM
It turned up on two plates from 3 April 1954, right on its predicted track. An independent re-measurement agreed within 0.2".
When I contacted the Minor Planet Center, I learned that others had already submitted measurements of the same plates.
When I contacted the Minor Planet Center, I learned that others had already submitted measurements of the same plates.
→ predict its position at each plate's time with JPL Horizons
→ find the right scanned plates in the Digitized Sky Survey, and correct their 1950s date and time conventions
→ re-measure each plate against Gaia stars moved back to 1954
→ reject stars, plate flaws, known asteroids, etc.
→ find the right scanned plates in the Digitized Sky Survey, and correct their 1950s date and time conventions
→ re-measure each plate against Gaia stars moved back to 1954
→ reject stars, plate flaws, known asteroids, etc.
October 30, 2026 at 9:41 AM
→ predict its position at each plate's time with JPL Horizons
→ find the right scanned plates in the Digitized Sky Survey, and correct their 1950s date and time conventions
→ re-measure each plate against Gaia stars moved back to 1954
→ reject stars, plate flaws, known asteroids, etc.
→ find the right scanned plates in the Digitized Sky Survey, and correct their 1950s date and time conventions
→ re-measure each plate against Gaia stars moved back to 1954
→ reject stars, plate flaws, known asteroids, etc.
On Tuesday, Rubin Observatory announced 2026 ED138, a new dwarf-planet candidate beyond Pluto, and its oldest reported image was from 2016.
I wondered whether it was hiding on the 1950s Palomar Sky Survey plates, so I built a Python pipeline to check:
I wondered whether it was hiding on the 1950s Palomar Sky Survey plates, so I built a Python pipeline to check:
October 30, 2026 at 9:41 AM
On Tuesday, Rubin Observatory announced 2026 ED138, a new dwarf-planet candidate beyond Pluto, and its oldest reported image was from 2016.
I wondered whether it was hiding on the 1950s Palomar Sky Survey plates, so I built a Python pipeline to check:
I wondered whether it was hiding on the 1950s Palomar Sky Survey plates, so I built a Python pipeline to check:
Saturn, Neptune, Mars and Mercury line up along the ecliptic; Neptune (magnitude 7.8) shows up at its predicted position. The stars are redrawn from their own measurements; no generative AI.
Images: NASA/Artemis II Crew · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/behind-the-moon-2026/
Images: NASA/Artemis II Crew · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/behind-the-moon-2026/
October 26, 2026 at 11:22 AM
Saturn, Neptune, Mars and Mercury line up along the ecliptic; Neptune (magnitude 7.8) shows up at its predicted position. The stars are redrawn from their own measurements; no generative AI.
Images: NASA/Artemis II Crew · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/behind-the-moon-2026/
Images: NASA/Artemis II Crew · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/behind-the-moon-2026/
I stacked 62 raw frames from the Artemis II crew into one HDR picture: a total solar eclipse, seen from behind the Moon.
Thank you Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen for shooting it, and NASA for releasing the raws this month.
#ArtemisII #Astrophotography
Thank you Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen for shooting it, and NASA for releasing the raws this month.
#ArtemisII #Astrophotography
October 26, 2026 at 11:22 AM
I stacked 62 raw frames from the Artemis II crew into one HDR picture: a total solar eclipse, seen from behind the Moon.
Thank you Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen for shooting it, and NASA for releasing the raws this month.
#ArtemisII #Astrophotography
Thank you Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen for shooting it, and NASA for releasing the raws this month.
#ArtemisII #Astrophotography
5,790 calibrated exposures from Nov 2025 to Oct 2026, taken 1.5 million km away near the Sun-Earth L1 point. Interplanetary glow removed, stacked by exposure time, false color on a log scale. The Moon is drawn where Carruthers measured it, about every 6 h.
#Heliophysics #SpaceWeather #Astronomy
#Heliophysics #SpaceWeather #Astronomy
October 25, 2026 at 10:39 AM
5,790 calibrated exposures from Nov 2025 to Oct 2026, taken 1.5 million km away near the Sun-Earth L1 point. Interplanetary glow removed, stacked by exposure time, false color on a log scale. The Moon is drawn where Carruthers measured it, about every 6 h.
#Heliophysics #SpaceWeather #Astronomy
#Heliophysics #SpaceWeather #Astronomy
Earth's hydrogen halo 🌍 in ultraviolet light, invisible from the ground: 5,458 hours of data. The disks: the Moon passing in front of Earth, 17–22 Feb.
Credit: NASA/Carruthers Geocorona Observatory · Stars: ESA Gaia, Hipparcos, Tycho-2 · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/earth-halo-2026
Credit: NASA/Carruthers Geocorona Observatory · Stars: ESA Gaia, Hipparcos, Tycho-2 · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/earth-halo-2026
October 25, 2026 at 10:39 AM
Earth's hydrogen halo 🌍 in ultraviolet light, invisible from the ground: 5,458 hours of data. The disks: the Moon passing in front of Earth, 17–22 Feb.
Credit: NASA/Carruthers Geocorona Observatory · Stars: ESA Gaia, Hipparcos, Tycho-2 · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/earth-halo-2026
Credit: NASA/Carruthers Geocorona Observatory · Stars: ESA Gaia, Hipparcos, Tycho-2 · Processing: Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp/earth-halo-2026
Spoiler alert: I'm working on yet another version...
October 25, 2026 at 6:57 AM
Spoiler alert: I'm working on yet another version...
A few close-ups: Eta Carinae and the Keyhole, NGC 3324, and some of the dusty clouds.
(The spikes are added in processing.)
Full size: stinga.jp/carina-2026/
(The spikes are added in processing.)
Full size: stinga.jp/carina-2026/
October 25, 2026 at 6:04 AM
A few close-ups: Eta Carinae and the Keyhole, NGC 3324, and some of the dusty clouds.
(The spikes are added in processing.)
Full size: stinga.jp/carina-2026/
(The spikes are added in processing.)
Full size: stinga.jp/carina-2026/
Today I revisited my Carina Nebula from January (once again 😅).
Still trying to find the look I like best, and still learning a lot about processing along the way.
Still trying to find the look I like best, and still learning a lot about processing along the way.
October 25, 2026 at 6:04 AM
Today I revisited my Carina Nebula from January (once again 😅).
Still trying to find the look I like best, and still learning a lot about processing along the way.
Still trying to find the look I like best, and still learning a lot about processing along the way.
Link to paper: iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3...
PDF: stinga.jp/papers/Sting...
More of my space stuff: stinga.jp
PDF: stinga.jp/papers/Sting...
More of my space stuff: stinga.jp
October 22, 2026 at 11:44 AM
Link to paper: iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3...
PDF: stinga.jp/papers/Sting...
More of my space stuff: stinga.jp
PDF: stinga.jp/papers/Sting...
More of my space stuff: stinga.jp
A small remaining curvature in the timings fits the light-travel effect of a distant companion star, though the data can't yet prove it.
October 22, 2026 at 11:44 AM
A small remaining curvature in the timings fits the light-travel effect of a distant companion star, though the data can't yet prove it.
The 2026 transits arrived 1.3 ± 1.2 minutes early, consistent with no change. The reported decay rate is excluded at 7.3σ taken at face value, or 2.6-2.9σ allowing for its published uncertainty.
October 22, 2026 at 11:44 AM
The 2026 transits arrived 1.3 ± 1.2 minutes early, consistent with no change. The reported decay rate is excluded at 7.3σ taken at face value, or 2.6-2.9σ allowing for its published uncertainty.
A 2024 study suggested that the hot Jupiter WASP-22 b was undergoing rapid orbital decay. At that rate, its 2026 transits should have arrived nearly 9 minutes ahead of schedule. Using new TESS data alongside re-timed 2018 data, I put this to the test.
October 22, 2026 at 11:44 AM
A 2024 study suggested that the hot Jupiter WASP-22 b was undergoing rapid orbital decay. At that rate, its 2026 transits should have arrived nearly 9 minutes ahead of schedule. Using new TESS data alongside re-timed 2018 data, I put this to the test.
My Research Note on exoplanets has just been published in Research Notes of the AAS!
Title: "TESS Transit Times from 2026 Do Not Confirm the Reported Orbital Decay of WASP-22 b"
#Exoplanets #Astronomy #TESS #Astrophysics #Research
Title: "TESS Transit Times from 2026 Do Not Confirm the Reported Orbital Decay of WASP-22 b"
#Exoplanets #Astronomy #TESS #Astrophysics #Research
October 22, 2026 at 11:44 AM
My Research Note on exoplanets has just been published in Research Notes of the AAS!
Title: "TESS Transit Times from 2026 Do Not Confirm the Reported Orbital Decay of WASP-22 b"
#Exoplanets #Astronomy #TESS #Astrophysics #Research
Title: "TESS Transit Times from 2026 Do Not Confirm the Reported Orbital Decay of WASP-22 b"
#Exoplanets #Astronomy #TESS #Astrophysics #Research
Featured on sorae as the “Space Image of the Day.” Press images, credits, and full-resolution versions are available at stinga.jp/saturn-2017/
影の中から見た土星 / Saturn from inside its shadow — Stefano Ivan Stinga
Cassini, 13 April 2017. 223 calibrated frames reprojected into one 8000×5000 view. Press images and credit. 画像：NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute／画像処理：Stefano Ivan Stinga
stinga.jp
October 20, 2026 at 10:27 PM
Featured on sorae as the “Space Image of the Day.” Press images, credits, and full-resolution versions are available at stinga.jp/saturn-2017/
Thank you @soraespace.bsky.social for featuring my Cassini view of Saturn from inside its shadow as their Space Image of the Day!
逆光に輝く環と照らされた土星の夜側 カッシーニの観測データから再構成【今日の宇宙画像】
sorae.info/newslink/sap...
この画像を作成したのは、日本在住で天体撮影や探査機データの画像処理に取り組むStefano Ivan Stingaさんで、sorae編集部にご提供いただきました
sorae.info/newslink/sap...
この画像を作成したのは、日本在住で天体撮影や探査機データの画像処理に取り組むStefano Ivan Stingaさんで、sorae編集部にご提供いただきました
逆光に輝く環と照らされた土星の夜側 カッシーニの観測データから再構成 【今日の宇宙画像】
土星探査機「カッシーニ」が撮影した223枚の画像から、土星の影の中で見た景色を再構成。逆光に輝く環や、環の光に照らされた夜側の雲が浮かび上がります。画像処理を手がけたStefano Ivan Stingaさんの作品を、撮影時の状況や作成方法とともに紹介します
sorae.info
October 18, 2026 at 2:21 PM
Thank you @soraespace.bsky.social for featuring my Cassini view of Saturn from inside its shadow as their Space Image of the Day!
Data: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute. Thank you @carolynporco.bsky.social and the imaging team. @kevinmgill.bsky.social, same day as your Earth-and-Moon-through-the-rings view. @elakdawalla.bsky.social @philplait.bsky.social
October 16, 2026 at 1:24 PM
Data: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute. Thank you @carolynporco.bsky.social and the imaging team. @kevinmgill.bsky.social, same day as your Earth-and-Moon-through-the-rings view. @elakdawalla.bsky.social @philplait.bsky.social
The bright band on the disk is ringshine seen through the thin C ring, its ringlets in silhouette. The faint arc below is the G ring; Mimas, Janus and Pandora are in the frame. Five and a half hours of frames shown as one instant; stars brightened 4×. Full size: flic.kr/p/2sGA4B9
October 16, 2026 at 1:24 PM
The bright band on the disk is ringshine seen through the thin C ring, its ringlets in silhouette. The faint arc below is the G ring; Mimas, Janus and Pandora are in the frame. Five and a half hours of frames shown as one instant; stars brightened 4×. Full size: flic.kr/p/2sGA4B9
Saturn from inside its shadow. On 13 April 2017 Cassini flew through Saturn's shadow: the Sun behind the planet, the rings glowing with light scattered through them, the night side lit only by the rings. More than 200 frames, rebuilt from the calibrated archive data at full resolution.
October 16, 2026 at 1:24 PM
Saturn from inside its shadow. On 13 April 2017 Cassini flew through Saturn's shadow: the Sun behind the planet, the rings glowing with light scattered through them, the night side lit only by the rings. More than 200 frames, rebuilt from the calibrated archive data at full resolution.
Credits: ESA/Proba-3/ASPIICS @esa.int @orb-ksb.bsky.social · SOHO/LASCO (ESA & NASA, NRL) @sungrazercomets.bsky.social · NASA/PUNCH (SwRI) @punch-mission.bsky.social @craig.deforest.org
Research note (data-only figure) submitted to RNAAS. Software and data: doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
Research note (data-only figure) submitted to RNAAS. Software and data: doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
October 15, 2026 at 3:44 PM
Credits: ESA/Proba-3/ASPIICS @esa.int @orb-ksb.bsky.social · SOHO/LASCO (ESA & NASA, NRL) @sungrazercomets.bsky.social · NASA/PUNCH (SwRI) @punch-mission.bsky.social @craig.deforest.org
Research note (data-only figure) submitted to RNAAS. Software and data: doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
Research note (data-only figure) submitted to RNAAS. Software and data: doi.org/10.5281/zeno...