The DwarfVision Summer Milky Way Challenge is LIVE!
Your mission to capture 20 incredible deep-sky objects starts now!
Start Your (DWARF) Engines!
The DwarfVision Summer Milky Way Challenge is officially underway! Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to capture 20 of the most incredible Deep Sky Objects the summer sky has to offer.
CONTEST PRIZES SPONSORED BY DWARF LAB (See details below)
The official list is a curated journey up the Milky Way. We've mixed ten of the most popular "Top 10" DSOs with ten fainter, more challenging targets to put your skills to the test.
To Enter, JUST START SHOOTING with your D2/3 (rules and regs are below.) Then tag your shot on FB with #dwarfvisionSummerChallenge
Stay tuned on Facebook and here on Substack for the contest LEADERBOARD, plus an Object by Object exploration, capture, processing, and post-processing tips & tricks, and backstage antidotes as the challenge unfolds!
Join the CREW!
For those looking for additional support, consider upgrading to a paid subscription. You will automatically join the DATA CLUB. We provide you with detailed capture tips for each object, our DSO data to experiment with, Post-Processed images to explore, Lightroom stretching presets, and dedicated chat support available here on Substack or Facebook. Everything you need to get the best from your shot!
Prizes Sponsored by DWARFLAB!
And to make things even more exciting, our friends at DWARFLAB are sponsoring the challenge! The first five finishers to capture all 20 DSOs will each receive a $50 coupon for the DWARFLAB store.
Ready to get started? All the details, rules, and the official target list are waiting for you on the official challenge page: DwarfVision Summer Milky Way Challenge
Find the official interactive list here, or print the XLS: Summer DSO Challenge List
North or South - No Problem!
A quick tip for our friends in the Northern Hemisphere: We recommend starting with the most southerly targets first! As the season progresses, these objects will dip lower and become harder to capture. Plus, we will give you a northern wildcard DSO to swap with one too far south to snag from Norway!
For our friends in the South, we will offer a wildcard DSO to swap out a northerly target.
From now until October 15th, 2025, we challenge you to hunt down and image this fantastic list of faint fuzzies.
Remember to tag your entries on FB with #dwarfvisionSummerChallenge
Challenge Rules
All submitted images must be tagged on Facebook with #dwarfvisionSummerChallenge.
Only images captured with a DWARF II or DWARF 3 smart telescope are eligible.
Submissions are valid only if captured between July 15th, 2025, and October 15th, 2025.
With your post, please include either a screenshot of your capture in progress OR attach the stacked.jpg file from your DWARF to your Facebook post.
Any post that does not comply with these rules may be rejected.
So charge your batteries, check your focus, and get ready to explore the summer sky. We can't wait to see your images!
Clear skies &
Duncan
DwarfVision
POWER TO YOUR DWARF!