IC 443 Region LRGB Version

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Distance: 5,000 Light Years

Magnitude: 12

Size: 50 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: L 30×300 Bin 1, R 30×240 Bin 2, G 27×240 Bin 2, B 24×240 Bin 2

This image was captured from my house in a Bortle 6/7 zone.

IC 443, also known as the Jellyfish nebula, is a supernova remnant located in the constellation Gemini. It is also cataloged as Sharpless 248. A supernova remnant is the remains of a very large star that exploded at the end of its life cycle. The explosion and resulting shock wave can energize surrounding gas and dust forming the many supernova shapes we see today. This supernova remnant contains a couple of different parts identified by their distinct shapes and chemical composition. The brighter part that shapes the right side of the head of the jellyfish contains iron, neon, silicon, and oxygen gasses and has the appearance of many filaments coming together. The left side of the head of the jellyfish consists mainly of hydrogen gas and heated dust with some filaments but has a more nebulous shape. Estimates of age vary from 3,000 to 30,000 years.

The larger shell to the left in my image which appears to be part of IC 443 is a separate supernova remnant. This is identified as G189.6+3.3 and estimated to be about 100,000 years old.

NGC 1499 SHO Version

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Distance: 1,800 Light Years

Magnitude: 6.0

Size: 150×50 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: SII 43×600, Ha 26×1200, OIII 33×600

This image was captured from my home in a Bortle 6/7 region.

NGC 1499, also known as the California nebula, is a large emission nebula in the constellation Perseus. The nebula gets its name from the resemblance to the shape of the state of California. This large nebula resides in the Orion arm of our galaxy and is illuminated by the brightest star in the picture, Xi Persei. Xi Persei is also known as Menkhib on most star charts and is a very hot bluish white star whose temperature is about 66,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This is over 6 times as hot as our own sun. There is a very extreme stellar wind created by this star and it is illuminating the gas and dust that forms the shape of the California nebula.

IC 2005 is located inside of my image but it is too dim to be seen at my image scale. It is a 14.8 magnitude spiral galaxy.

Here is an Ha version:

Exposures: Ha 26×1200

NGC 1499 Ha Version

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IC 405 410 417 SHO Version

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Distance: IC 405 1,500 Light Years
Distance: IC 410 12,000 Light Years
Distance: IC 417 10,000 Light Years

Magnitude: IC 405 9
Magnitude: IC 410 7.5
Magnitude: IC 417 6.0

Size: IC 405 30×20 Arc Minutes
Size: IC 410 55×45 Arc Minutes
Size: IC 417 14×10 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: SII 19×900, Ha 37×900, OIII 19×900

This image was captured from my house in a Bortle 6/7 zone.

Emission nebula IC 410 is illuminated by a young and bright star cluster called NGC 1893. To find it in my image just follow the tadpoles, they appear to be swimming right to it. The Tadpoles are star formation areas each having their own designations as Sim 129 and Sim 130. They get their shape from very hot and young stars blasting out ultraviolet radiation and shaping the surrounding gas to appear like tadpoles. The stars inside are very young, about one million years old, and are about 10x the size of our own sun. This cluster is very young at about 4 million years old and contains several hundred stars. There are also a few dark nebula nearby. It is these dark nebula that give the nebula what appears to be ears, eyes, and a mouth that resemble a profile of a monkeys head.  (I think the overall nebula looks like the profile of a monkey head but there is already another nebula with this name).

IC 405, also known as the Flaming Star Nebula, is a combination of emission and reflection nebula in the constellation of Auriga. It is the long nebula on the left side of my image. The star AE Aurigae is surrounded by gas and appears to be on fire hence the nickname. It is also the star that is ionizing the surrounding gas creating the emission part of the nebula. The light from this same star also reflects off the surrounding dust creating the reflection part of the nebula. It is thought that this star was originally part of the Trapezium cluster inside of the Orion Nebula and it is moving away at 62 miles per second.

IC 417, The Spider Nebula, is shown in the lower right of my image. It is a small emission nebula. Its light source is a star cluster known as Stock 8 which is shaping the gas and dust in the area. There are about 40 young hot stars in this cluster.

NGC 1931, the Fly Nebula, is also in the lower right of my image. It is an emission and reflection nebula.

Below is an Ha version:

Exposures: Ha 37×900

IC 405 410 417 Ha Version

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Distance: 2,900 Light Years

Magnitude: Unknown

Size: 100 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: SII 30×600, Ha 35×600, OIII 30×600

This image was captured from my home in a Bortle 6/7 region.

NGC 7822 is an emission nebula in the constellation Cepheus. It contains an open star cluster, dark dust lanes, elephant trunk structures, and Bok globules.

It is illuminated by an open star cluster called Berkeley 59. In this cluster is star DD+661673 which is 100,000 times larger than our sun. At 45,000 Kelvin, it is blasting away at the surrounding dust and forming the elephant trunk shaped dust lanes. This cluster is home to several other type O and B stars that are very young, very large, and very hot. Berkeley 59 also contains 42 variable stars.

The dark lanes seen in my image are listed in Lynd’s Dark Nebula catalog as LDN 1267, LDN 1268, LDN 1269, LDN 1270, LDN 1271, and LDN 1275. LDN 1267 is about 9 arc-minutes in size. LDN 1268 is about 27 arc-minutes in size. LDN 1269 is about 10 arc-minutes in size. LDN 1270 is about 6 arc-minutes in size. LDN 1271 is about 6 arc-minutes in size. LDN 1275 is about 10 arc-minutes in size.

Elephant trunk structures are areas of colder gas and dust that are cylindrically shaped as a result of the large amounts of ultraviolet radiation emitted from the open star cluster. All of the elephant trunk structures in my image point to the central star cluster Berkeley 59. One elephant trunk structure known as the “Dancing Queen” is actually rotating upon its axis. The “Dancing Queen” trunk is the smaller object to the right of the bigger trunk just below and right of the image center. Elephant trunk structures are also known to be active star forming regions but it often takes IR imaging to see through the dense gas and dust. There are also smaller areas of dense gas and dust in NGC 7822 known as globules. These are smaller concentrations of dust and gas usually spherical or tear dropped in shape.

Here is a close up of the image that I captured with a Takahashi TOA-130:

Exposures: SII 18×600, Ha 30×900, OIII 16×900

NGC 7822, SH2-171, Berkeley 59, LBN 584, LBN 588
NGC 7822 LSHO Version

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Here is an LRGB version captured with a Takahashi TOA-130:

Exposures: L 18×600, R 20×300, G 20×300, B 20×300

NGC 7822, SH2-171, Berkeley 59, LBN 584, LBN 588
NGC 7822 LRGB Version

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Tulip Nebula Region

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Distance: 6,000 Light Years

Magnitude: 9.0

Size: 16 x 9 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: SII 34×600, Ha 34×600, OIII 30×600

This image was captured from my home in a Bortle 6/7 region.

Sharpless 101, the Tulip Nebula, is located in the constellation Cygnus. It is also cataloged as Ced 173 and LBN 168. It is illuminated by a young hot star listed as HD 227018 with a visible magnitude of 9.0.

NGC 6871 is a small open star cluster located to the left in my image. At magnitude 5.2 it is 5,100 light years away. It contains less than 50 young stars.

In the area around NGC 6871 are LBN 180, LBN 182, LBN 179, and LBN 174.

Cygnus X-1 is a micro quasar that consists of a star listed as HD 226868 and a very small high mass object though to be a black hole. They orbit each other with a period of 5.6 days. It is to the right of the Tulip nebula in my image.

M31 LRGB Version

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Distance: 2.9 Million Light Years

Magnitude: 3.4

Size: 173 x 63 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: L 94×300 Bin 1, R 59×150 Bin 2, G 59×150 Bin 2, B 59×150 Bin 2

This image was captured from my house in a Bortle 6/7 zone. It is bright enough to observe unaided from my Bortle 6/7 zone.

Messier 31, also known as the Andromeda galaxy, is a large spiral galaxy and is home to about 1 trillion stars. It is about 250,000 light years in diameter and is also the largest galaxy in our local galaxy group which consists of the Triangulum galaxy, Milky Way galaxy, and 44 other galaxies. Some recent studies suggest that our Milky Way galaxy may actually be denser than the Andromeda galaxy even though our galaxy is much smaller. The Hubbell Space Telescope discovered what appear to be two galactic cores. One thought is that there are two galactic cores perhaps caused by an earlier interaction between two galaxies. The other thought is that there is only one core but it appears as two cores due to dark dust clouds partially obscuring the view. The Andromeda galaxy contains globular and open star clusters, Ha nebula regions, planetary nebula, super nova, and other objects found in spiral galaxies.

M31 contains the largest observed globular cluster known as G1. This cluster contains several million stars and is twice as luminous as Omega Centauri (the largest and brightest globular in our galaxy). To date, there have been about 460 globular clusters discovered in M31. The globular clusters in M31 range in age from several million years to about 5 billion years while the ones in our galaxy typically are over 10 billion years old. There is also a very large star cloud that has its own NGC designation, NGC 206, and is visible in my image in the top left corner of the galaxy arm.

As with most spiral galaxies there are several Ha regions contained within the spiral arms. These areas are where star formation is actively occurring and many in M31 can be seen with amateur telescopes and CCD cameras. A recent paper [Univ. of Western Ontario Aug 2011] states 3,691 Ha regions have been discovered in this galaxy.

To the bottom left of the galaxy is Messier 110. This is a small elliptical galaxy and from Earth is about the same distance as M31, 2.9 million light years. At magnitude 8.5 it can’t be seen with the naked eye. This galaxy is also a satellite galaxy of M31 which means it is gravitationally bound with M31. There have been 8 globular clusters found in this galaxy and there are also a few dust lanes apparent in images captured with larger telescopes.

Directly above the core of M31 is Messier 32. This is a small elliptical galaxy and it is also gravitationally bound with M31. Its distance from Earth is about the same as M31 and M110 at 2.9 million light years. At magnitude 8.1 it can’t be observed with the naked eye. As with most elliptical galaxies M32 is old and there are not a lot of Ha regions where new star formation is occurring.

Soul Nebula SHO Version

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Distance: 6,500 Light Years

Magnitude: 6.5

Size: 110×80 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: SII 66×600, Ha 58×1200, OIII 34×600

This image was captured from my home in a Bortle 6/7 region.

IC 1848, commonly called the Soul Nebula, is a star cluster surrounded by emission nebula SH2-199. It is located in the Perseus arm of our galaxy in the constellation of Cassiopeia. The ultraviolet radiation and wind from the young hot stars in the cluster are blasting away the nebula dust cloud giving the nebula its shape. The parts of the dust cloud that are denser form the perimeter structure of the Soul nebula and the less dense areas form the inner structure. In the denser parts of the nebula there are several pillars of compressed gas and dust where star formation is occurring. There are also several other smaller open clusters that have formed in the outer perimeter. IC1848 and the other smaller clusters in this area are all part of the CAS OB6 association.

IC 1871 is the small fan shaped emission nebula to the left of the Soul nebula. Within the fan shaped nebula there is a dust cloud that appears to nearly split the nebula in two.

Here is an Ha version:

Exposures: Ha 58×1200

Soul Nebula Ha Version

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IC 1396 SHO

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Distance: 2,400 Light Years

Magnitude: 11.5

Size: 170 Arc Minutes

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: SII 38×600 Bin 1, Ha 46×600 Bin 1, OIII 30×600 Bin 1

This image was captured from my home in a Bortle 6/7 zone.

IC 1396, also known as the Elephant Trunk nebula, is found in the constellation Cepheus and is about 2,400 light years away. IC 1396 is one of the larger emission nebula taking up about 3 degrees of sky and containing several star forming regions. The most prominent is IC 1396A which is the part that resembles an elephant trunk. IC 1396A is a dense dark cloud of dust that is illuminated by a very bright nearby star that also illuminates the entire nebula. The bright star is HD 206267 and it is a massive Type O star. The radiation and winds from this star are thought to be the force behind the compression of gas and dust creating the star forming regions. Also contributing to illumination of this area is the open star cluster Trumpler 37 which is seen in the foreground of my image. The glowing edges surrounding parts of the dark globules are formed by the excited gas in the Ha region. This presents the bright backdrop for the globule. In the tip of the Elephant Nebula is a circular globule of dust that is open in the middle. Two newly formed stars are found here and they have cleared a section of the dust cloud as a process of their formation.

Sadr Region Ha Version

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Distance: Sadr 1,800 Light Years

Magnitude: Sadr 2.23

Size: Sadr 150 times the size of our sun

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: Ha 26×600

This image was captured from my home in a Bortle 6/7 region. It is a four panel mosaic with the center of the mosaic focused on the star Sadr. This is the central star that forms the intersection of the asterism that forms the constellation Cygnus.

IC 1318, the Gamma Cygni Nebula, is to the left of Sadr. It is a very large emission nebula that spans about 200 light years. It consists of IC1318A, IC 1318B, and IC 1318C. All three sections of IC 1318 are 4,900 light years away. IC 1318A is 50 arc minutes in size. IC 1318B is also 50 arc minutes in size. IC 1318C is 40 arc minutes in size. LDN 889 is a dark nebula that separates IC 1318B and IC 1318C.

NGC 6914 is 6,000 light years away with a size of 5 arc minutes. It is a small reflection nebula located to the left of IC1318A and above IC1318B in my image.

IC 1311 is an open star cluster. It is 19,000 light years away with a magnitude of 13.10. In my image, it is located towards the top right corner and appears brighter than the surrounding background nebula.

NGC 6910 is an open star cluster with a magnitude of 7.4. In my image it is located just above and to the left of Sadr. Located at a distance of 3,700 light years, it has a size of 10 arc minutes.

NGC 6888, the Crescent Nebula is seen in the lower right of my image. At 4,100 light years away it measures 18’ arc minutes in size. The Crescent Nebula is an emission nebula in the constellation Cygnus. The illuminating source is the Wolf Rayet star WR 136. In general a Wolf Rayet star is a very large hot star that is rapidly shedding mass in the form of ultraviolet radiation. WR 136 is estimated to be 250,000 times brighter than our sun, 15 times more massive, and with a temperature of 70,000 Kelvin. WR 136 is ejecting matter at a speed of 6.1 million kilometers per hour. This high speed matter hits the ambient dust and gas and gives the Crescent nebula its shape. Part of the surrounding gas and dust is previously ejected material from WR 136 when it was a red giant about 250,000 years ago.
It is the gas and dust in the surrounding medium that is compressed in to a thin shell giving the nebula its shape. There are actually two waves of shocked gas, one corresponding to the shocked stellar wind and the other to shocked interstellar gas. The hot interior of this bubble is where the energy is stored and subsequently used for driving the entire structure.

The following smaller items are also seen in my image:

Collinder 419 is an open star cluster with a magnitude of 13.10. It has a size of 4 arc minutes. It is above and to the right of Sadr in my image.

Collinder 421 is an open star cluster with a size of 7 arc minutes. It is above NGC 6910 in my image.

M29 is an open star cluster located 4,000 light years away with a visual magnitude of 7.1 There are about 50 stars in this cluster with several of them classified as type BO which are very young and very hot stars. In my image it is located below and to the left of Sadr, almost in line with the Crescent nebula.

Rosette Nebula SHO

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Distance: 5,200 Light Years

Magnitude: 9.0

Size: 1.3 Degrees

Telescope: Borg 71

Camera: QSI683

Mount: AP1100

Exposures: SII 10×480, Ha 12×480, OIII 10×480

This image was captured from my home in a Bortle 6/7 region.

The Rosette nebula is a large emission nebula in the constellation Monoceros. It consists of several star clusters with surrounding emission nebula designated as NGC 2237, 2238, 2239, and 2246 all surrounding the central open star cluster NGC 2244. It also has a Sharpless Catalog designation as SH2-275 and a Caldwell designation as Caldwell 49.

NGC 2244, the central star cluster is very young and was formed from the gas surrounding the cluster. This cluster is also responsible for illuminating the surrounding gas that forms the Rosette nebula. The cluster contains Type O and B stars which are very large, very hot, and the ultraviolet radiation from these stars form the “hole” in the center of the nebula by blasting away the less dense gas.

Star formation is still occurring in this region as other small clusters (NGC 2238, 2239) have been detected in the surrounding gas areas of the nebula.

Object Name: Rosette Nebula LRGB

Exposures: L 24×300 Bin 1, R 24×150 Bin 2, G 24×150 Bin 2, B 24×150 Bin 2

Rosette Nebula LRGB

For a full size image click here.