R. Jay GaBany

Robert Jay GaBany (born September 17, 1954, in Charleston, West Virginia) is an American amateur astronomer and astrophotographer who is also known for his work with an international team of astrophysicists led by Dr. David Martínez-Delgado (Max Planck Institute for Astronomy).

GaBany helped pioneer the use of modest size telescopes and off the shelf CCD-cameras to produce long exposure images that revealed ancient galactic merger remnants in the form of star streams surrounding nearby galaxies that were previously undetected or suspected.

In recent years, GaBany has devoted hundreds of hours to work with a team of astronomers led by Martínez-Delgado of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Germany to produce ultra-deep CCD images of galaxies far beyond the Local Group.

During the summer of 2013, GaBany was again cited as one of The 25 Most Influential People in Space by authors Jeffrey Kluger and Michael D. Lemonick in their book titled New Frontiers of Space- From Mars to the Edge of the Universe.

NASA selected GaBany's image of NGC 3521, the Bubble galaxy, as the uncredited back drop for the official crew portrait of Expedition 30 to the International Space Station.

NGC 3521 - the Bubble galaxy in Leo
International Space Station Expedition 30 crew portrait