A photograph. A story. An idea worth following.
I’ve always been curious about how things work. Science, technology, astronomy. If something catches my interest, I have a tendency to go down the rabbit hole and see where it takes me. Astrophotography has turned out to be one heck of a rabbit hole.
Astronomy isn’t new to me. Years ago I served as an officer of the Society of Amateur Radio Astronomers (SARA) serving with Jeff Lichtman (Founder), studying the sky through radio rather than light. Astrophotography, though, is a more recent obsession. I got started a couple of years ago with a Seestar S50. What began as a way to explore and photograph the night sky quickly turned into something much bigger. Before long I found myself learning about telescopes, cameras, image acquisition and the seemingly endless challenges of processing astronomical data. The more I learned, the more I realized how much I didn’t know. That hasn’t changed. Every image teaches me something new and I often find myself going back to older data to see what I can do differently with what I’ve learned since.
One of the best parts of this journey has been the people I’ve met along the way. I’m a board member of the Amateur Astronomers Association (AAA), a nonprofit organization founded in 1927 and approaching its centennial. I’m also a founding operator of its Gateway Project, which operates remote telescopes in Texas and Chile. It’s a wonderful collaboration where people bring different skills and experiences to the table. I’ve had the opportunity to write about remote astrophotography for Sky & Telescope and the AAA. I’ve learned an enormous amount from people who have been doing this far longer than I have and I enjoy contributing what I can in return.
Outside of astronomy, I run Core System Partners, a consulting firm focused on banking and technology. I’ve also gotten pretty deep into software development and AI, particularly building applications and autonomous AI agents. One of those projects is In-Bot, a voice-first app I developed to capture ideas and thoughts as they happen. I also created Proof & Particle, a creative venture that combines my interests in astronomy, mathematics, physics and design. They may seem like completely different pursuits but for me they all come from the same place: curiosity, a love of learning and the satisfaction of figuring out how to make something work.
As for the images on this site, they’re the result of a lot of experimentation, mistakes, occasional frustration and some pretty satisfying discoveries. I enjoy the entire process, from collecting photons that have traveled thousands or millions of years to reach us to figuring out how to bring out the structures and details hidden in the data. Sometimes that means spending hours on an image only to start over because I know I can do better.
There’s also been an unexpected benefit to all of this. I’ve found astrophotography to be remarkably therapeutic. On nights when I’ve spent time working on an image, I tend to sleep better. And here’s the really curious part: I seem to dream in color more often on those nights. I have no idea why, but I’m certainly not complaining!
I’m still learning and I suspect I always will be. That’s probably what I enjoy most about it.
John is my buddy, and the reason I came back to astronomy and found my way into astrophotography. He is a master of his craft, and he has given an incomprehensible amount of generous time to getting me going and coaching me along the way. I don’t hold a candle to him, but I’m beyond grateful. It is John’s Dragons of Ara that graces the cover of the May 2026 Sky & Telescope, the issue that carries my cover story.
johnklearman.com ↗
Mel is a mentor and a buddy. He taught me how to look at an ordinary garden and experience a million shades of green. He has done the same for my life.
sculptorhantz.com ↗Stan was generous with his time, showing me how to use the Gateway telescope and the art of printing photographs.
stanhonda.com ↗Alfredo showed me how to use the Gateway telescope, and David and Andrew have both spent a generous amount of time teaching me.
For publication bylines and contributor profiles.
Rick Mavrovich is a New York-based astrophotographer and board member of the Amateur Astronomers Association (AAA), founded in 1927 and approaching its centennial. He is also a founding operator of the AAA Gateway Project, a collaborative remote imaging initiative with telescopes in Texas and Chile. He has written about astronomy and remote astrophotography for Sky & Telescope and the AAA. His work is driven by curiosity, experimentation and a fascination with what we can discover when we turn our instruments toward the night sky.
For publication and image requests, talks, collaboration, or just to compare notes on the night sky, I’d be glad to hear from you.
rick.mavrovich [at] gmail.com