From Moon Rocks to Backyard Galaxies: Mélanie Barboni’s Seestar Story

25. Juni 2025

Mélanie Barboni is a geochemistry professor in the United States whose daily research involves studying Moon rocks brought back by the Apollo missions. But long before her academic career, her fascination with the cosmos began in the mountains of Switzerland, where she grew up gazing at the stars with a simple family telescope.

That old scope wasn’t automated—it could barely find the Moon or Saturn—but it was enough to ignite a lifelong love for the night sky. A defining moment came when she met Swiss astronaut Claude Nicollier, who flew four missions on the Space Shuttle and worked on the Hubble Space Telescope. Hearing his stories and seeing images from Hubble left her deeply inspired, though capturing such beauty herself felt like a distant dream.

Years later, as a professor working closely with lunar samples, Mélanie’s childhood wonder was reignited. She still longed to photograph the universe herself—but traditional astrophotography equipment seemed far too complex and time-consuming.

Everything changed when a colleague shared an image of the Orion Nebula taken with a Seestar smart telescope. Captivated by its quality—and simplicity—she decided to try it for herself. The result? A telescope that made the universe not only visible, but accessible.

Now, Seestar has become part of her nightly ritual. From her backyard, she captures deep sky objects she once thought were out of reach, using just her telescope, phone, and the Seestar app.

“It’s turned stargazing into the highlight of my day,” she says. “A dream I never thought would come true—now part of my daily life.”