Cosmic Photons Astrophotography : NGC 281 in Mapped Color

Every day our eyes catch the light of our memories – time spent with family, the journey to work, a special holiday, a beautiful sunset or a dark starlit night. Each image captured is a picture drawn in light – a photograph: only to be lost in our minds or forever forgotten. Nearly two hundred years ago a small group of amateur scientists achieved what had eluded mankind for centuries – the ability to capture a permanent record of an image seen by their own eyes – a moment in time frozen onto a surface. They had discovered Photography. They were the ‘Catchers of the Light’.

Monday, August 10, 2009

NGC 281 in Mapped Color

57% of the original size

full resolution

NGC 281 is an H II region in the constellation of Cassiopeia and part of the Perseus Spiral Arm. It includes or is near the open cluster IC 1590, the double star HD 5005, and several Bok globules. It is visible in amateur telescopes from dark sky locations. It is sometimes unofficially referred to as the Pacman Nebula owing to its fancied resemblance to the eponymous hero of the arcade game Pac-Man.

[SII], H-alpha, and [OIII] mapped to red, green, and blue, respectively. H-alpha data also used as luminance.
Ha_SIIHaOIII
Ha: 7x10min
SII: 8x10min
OIII: 7x10min

Total exposure only 3h40min under full moon from Kallithea Athens Greece.

1 comment:

Dentists Greece said...: Θοδωρή μόλις τώρα άνοιξα την φωτογραφία. Φίλε για ακόμα μία φορά ξεπέρασες τον εαυτό σου. Κυριολεκτικά χάνεσαι στην τράπεζα που δουλεύεις... Εδώ είναι το στοιχείο σου - τελεία και παύλα.; August 21, 2009 at 8:59 AM