Tom Urbain
About Author
Tom Urbain is an amateur astronomer, astrophotographer, and the original founder of Starlust.org, a space-focused website he launched in 2019 with one simple goal: to make the night sky feel less intimidating and more accessible to everyone. With no formal background in astronomy, Tom taught himself everything from telescope optics to lunar photography - a journey that began as a personal hobby and grew into a widely read online resource for stargazers around the world.
Driven by curiosity and a deep love for space, Tom spent years researching and creating hands-on guides for beginners, testing gear in his backyard in Manchester, and sharing monthly night-sky highlights to help readers reconnect with the cosmos. His approachable writing style and practical advice quickly earned him a loyal audience, many of whom were discovering astronomy for the first time.
In addition to his work with Starlust, Tom also founded Card Codex, a platform dedicated to collectible card games.
When he’s not out chasing meteor showers or photographing the Moon through his telescope, Tom can often be found speaking on podcasts, contributing to astronomy communities, and advocating for dark-sky preservation. He currently lives in Manchester, UK, where despite the glow of city lights, he still manages to find wonder in the stars.
Driven by curiosity and a deep love for space, Tom spent years researching and creating hands-on guides for beginners, testing gear in his backyard in Manchester, and sharing monthly night-sky highlights to help readers reconnect with the cosmos. His approachable writing style and practical advice quickly earned him a loyal audience, many of whom were discovering astronomy for the first time.
In addition to his work with Starlust, Tom also founded Card Codex, a platform dedicated to collectible card games.
When he’s not out chasing meteor showers or photographing the Moon through his telescope, Tom can often be found speaking on podcasts, contributing to astronomy communities, and advocating for dark-sky preservation. He currently lives in Manchester, UK, where despite the glow of city lights, he still manages to find wonder in the stars.
Latest From Tom Urbain
G1 Globular Cluster
G1 is the most luminous globular cluster in the entire Local Group of galaxies.
Hubble Nebula
Discovered by Sir William Herschel in 1783 and named for Edwin Hubble, NGC 2261 is a fascinating reflection nebula associated with the variable star R Monocerotis.
Helix planetary nebula
The Helix Nebula is one of the closest of all planetary nebulae, lying at a distance of about 400 light-years from Earth.
Galaxies
These days any amateur astronomer using a small telescope can see hundreds of galaxies, millions of light-years away.
Galaxies in Andromeda
Learn about the three galaxies you can observe within the boundaris of the Andromeda Constellation.
Lagoon Nebula
M8, nicknamed the “Lagoon Nebula“, is a vast cloud of interstellar gas and dust more than 50 light-years across and about 5,700 light-years distant.
M13 Globular Cluster
M13, the Great Cluster in Hercules, teeters on the edge of naked eye visibility and appears in binoculars as a small, circular, hazy glow.
M104 Galaxy
The well-known “Sombrero” galaxy M104 in Virgo is probably the best example of an Sa spiral, with tightly- wound spiral arms and a large luminous bulge.
M1 Supernova Remnant
Have you ever seen the remains of a star in its old age? If not, take out your scope on a clear night and point it towards the constellation Taurus.
NGC 6891 and NGC 6905
Delphinus contains a variety of deep sky objects for backyard telescopes. Two of these objects are of particular interest: the easily observed planetary nebulae NGC 6891 and NGC 6905.
M81 and M82 Galaxies
Information about M81 and M82, two interesting galaxies in Ursa Major.
M35
M35 can be found in the constellation Gemini and contains over one hundred member stars scattered across an area as large as the full Moon.
M78 and NGC 2071
M78 is a bright reflection nebula located close to the celestial equator, and about four degrees east of Mintaka (Delta Orionis), the westernmost star in Orion’s belt.
M76 Planetary Nebula
M76 (the Little Dumbbell Nebula) is located in the constellation Perseus at a distance of roughly 3,600 light-years.
M44 Open Cluster
M44, Praesepe, also popularly termed the Beehive Cluster, is one of the largest and brightest of all open star clusters.
M41 Open Cluster
M41 is one of the deep sky showpieces of winter, a beautiful open star cluster first documented in 320 B.C. by Aristotle.
Open Clusters
Open clusters are extended families of a few hundred comparatively young stars bound together by gravity.
NGC188
NGC 188 has the dual distinction of being both the northernmost and the oldest open star cluster visible from Earth.
NGC 7662 Planetary Nebula
NGC 7662 is a bright planetary nebula in Andromeda, one of the easiest objects of its type to see with small amateur telescopes.
Planetary Nebulae
Planetary nebulae are shells of gas thrown out by some stars near the end of their lives.