Elephant's Trunk nebula

The Elephant's Trunk nebula is a concentration of interstellar gas and dust in the star cluster IC 1396 – an ionized gas region located in the constellation Cepheus about 2,400 light years away from Earth.[1] The piece of the nebula shown here is the dark, dense globule IC 1396A; it is commonly called the Elephant's Trunk nebula because of its appearance at visible light wavelengths, where there is a dark patch with a bright, sinuous rim. The bright rim is the surface of the dense cloud that is being illuminated and ionized by a very bright, massive star that is just to the west of IC 1396A.The entire IC 1396 region is ionized by the massive star, except for dense globules that can protect themselves from the star's harsh ultraviolet rays.

The Elephant's Trunk nebula is now thought to be a site of star formation, containing several very young (less than 100,000 yr) stars that were discovered in infrared images in 2003. Two older (but still young, a couple of million years, by the standards of stars, which live for billions of years) stars are present in a small, circular cavity in the head of the globule. Winds from these young stars may have emptied the cavity.

The combined action of the light from the massive star ionizing and compressing the rim of the cloud, and the wind from the young stars shifting gas from the center outward lead to very high compression in the Elephant's Trunk nebula. This pressure has triggered the current generation of protostars.[2]

Instruments and exposure data:

W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener

FeatherTouch 3'' focuser

Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser

W.O ZS80 ED
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Meade DSI 

Filters:

Ha 5nm Astrodon

Sky-Watcher   EQ6 Pro

Ha :29*15min bin1x1

Sharpless 171 Hubble palette

Tricolor Emission Line Image

Instruments and exposure data:

W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener

FeatherTouch 3'' focuser

Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser

W.O ZS80 ED
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Meade DSI 

Filters:

SII 8nm Baader Planetarium

Ha 5nm Astrodon

OIII 8.5nm Baader Planetarium

Sky-Watcher   EQ6 Pro

SII :30*15min bin1x1
Ha :30*15min bin1x1

OIII:30*15min bin1x1

Total exposure time:22h30min 

Anacortes Image of the Day 19/09/2011

Northern Galactic Image of the Month Award for September 2011

http://www.northerngalactic.com/forum/news.php

Sharpless 171 and Berkeley 59, HII region and open cluster in Cepheus

This expanding shell of gas and dust was created by the original star cluster at the heart of Cep OB4, that has now dispersed. It is now lit and ionized by the young star cluster Berkeley 59, at its south end and it is expanding into the dark nebula NGC 7822 at its north end. Berkeley 59 is surrounded by another dark region of disturbed gas and dust called W1.

credit: galaxymap.org 

Instruments and exposure data:
W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener and FeatherTouch 3'' focuser
Filter Ha 5nm Astrodon
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser
EQ6

Ha:15*15min bin1x1
Total exposure time:3h45min

Crab Nebula M1

The Crab Nebula (catalogue designations M1, NGC 1952, Taurus A) is a supernova remnant and pulsar wind nebula in the constellation of Taurus. The nebula was observed by John Bevis in 1731.
The supernova was noted on July 4, 1054 A.D. by Chinese astronomers as a new or "guest star," and was about four times brighter than Venus, or about mag -6. According to the records, it was visible in daylight for 23 days, and 653 days to the naked eye in the night sky.
At X-ray and gamma-ray energies above 30 KeV, the Crab is generally the strongest persistent source in the sky, with measured flux extending to above 1012 eV. Located at a distance of about 6,500 light-years (2 kpc) from Earth, the nebula has a diameter of 11 ly (3.4 pc) and expands at a rate of about 1,500 kilometers per second.
At the center of the nebula lies the Crab Pulsar, a neutron star (or spinning ball of neutrons), 28-30km across,[5] which emits pulses of radiation from gamma rays to radio waves with a spin rate of 30.2 times per second. The nebula was the first astronomical object identified with a historical supernova explosion.
The cloudy remnants of SN 1054 are now known as the Crab Nebula. The nebula is also referred to as Messier 1 or M1, being the first Messier Object catalogued in 1758.

Instruments and exposure data
W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener and FeatherTouch 3'' focuser
Filter Astrodon Hα 5nm
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser
EQ6
Hα:10*15min(bin1x1) total 2h30min
Kallithea Athens Hellas

Astrobin Image of the Day 22 May 2014

NGC 1491

NGC 1491 is an emission nebula found in the constellation of Perseus. This particular nebula has an 11th magnitude star in its center.This object is heavily composed of HII.The central star is "blowing" a bubble in the gas that immediately surrounds it(from www.noao.edu)
Instruments and exposure data
W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener and FeatherTouch 3'' focuser
Filter Astrodon Hα 5nm
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser
EQ6
Hα:42*10min(bin1x1) total 7h
Kallithea Athens Hellas

Rosette Nebula

The Rosette Nebula is a large, circular H II region located near one end of a giant molecular cloud in the Monoceros region of the Milky Way Galaxy. The open cluster NGC 2244 is closely associated with the nebulosity, the stars of the cluster having been formed from the nebula's matter.
The cluster and nebula lie at a distance of some 5,200 light years from Earth (although estimates of the distance vary considerably) and measure roughly 130 light years in diameter. The radiation from the young stars excite the atoms in the nebula, causing them to emit radiation themselves producing the emission nebula we see. The mass of the nebula is estimated to be around 10,000 solar masses.
It is believed that stellar winds from a group of O and B stars are exerting pressure on interstellar clouds to cause compression, followed by star formation in the nebula. This star formation is currently still ongoing.
A survey of the nebula with the Chandra X-ray Observatory in 2001 has revealed the presence of very hot, young stars at the core of the Rosette Nebula. These stars have heated the surrounding gas to a temperature in the order of 6 million kelvins causing them to emit copious amounts of X-rays.
Instruments and exposure data
W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener and FeatherTouch 3'' focuser
Filter Astrodon Hα 5nm
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser
EQ6
Hα:20*5min(bin1x1) total 1h40min
Kallithea Athens Hellas

Pickering's Triangle NGC 6979

Pickering's Triangle is part of the Cygnus Loop supernova remnant, which includes the famous Veil Nebula.
Astronomers estimate that the supernova explosion that produced the nebula occurred between 5,000 to 10,000 years ago.
Pickering’s Triangle was discovered in 1904 by Williamina Fleming of the Harvard Observatory while examining photographic plates of the area. The object was named in honor of her boss, astronomer Edward Charles Pickering, then director of the Observatory. Pickering’s Triangle goes by a number of aliases, including Pickering’s Wedge, Fleming’s Triangular Wisp, and Simeis 3-188. Current estimates place this supernova remnant at about 1800 light years from Earth.
The entire Veil Nebula complex, of which Pickering’s Triangle is but a portion has an apparent diameter of about 3° or nine full moons!


W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener and Feather Touch 3'' focuser
SBIG ST10XME CFW9 

Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser

EQ6

Astrodon 5nm Ηα

320 min 32*10min subs (bin 1x1) under near full moon

Kallithea Athens Hellas

SH2-112 in Cygnus

Sh2-112 is a Hα emission object.It is located in the constellation of Cygnus ,a little less than 1.5 degree from Deneb,the brightest star in this constellation.
W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener and Feather Touch 3'' focuser
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser
EQ6
Astrodon 5nm Hα
320 min_40*8min subs (bin1x1) under near full moon    

(Sh2-101) Sharpless 2-101, an emission nebula in Cygnus

(Sh2-101) Sharpless 2-101, an emission nebula in Cygnus.
Sh2-101 also known as Tulip Nebula, is a quite bright emission nebula.

W.O FLT110 with dedicated TMB field flattener and Feather Touch 3'' focuser
SBIG ST10XME CFW9
Starizona MicroTouch autofocuser
EQ6
Astrodon 5nmHα
240 min _30*8min subs

Anacortes Image of the Day 14-06-2010

M97:The OWL NEBULA

Owl Nebula was discovered in 1781 by Pierre Méchain, collaborator of Charles Messier, and it was incorporated into Messier's catalogue of diffuse objects with number 97. Although its surface brightness is quite low, it can be seen with amateur telescopes in dark nights. Large telescopes, or photographic techniques, are required in order to perceive the two cavities that justify its name. Only photographs reveal the surprising display of colours of M97.
The planetary nebula M97 is placed in the constellation of the Big Bear. It is very difficult to evaluate the distances to planetary nebulae and this case is not an exception. Thus, astronomical literature registers distances ranging from 1500 to 2500 light-years from Earth.
The central, dying star, is a small and hot object, around one hundred thousand centigrade degrees at the surface. The radiations from this white dwarf excite the atoms of the nebulous layers and make them shine. As other planetary nebulae, the shine of M97 comes mainly from the emissions from ionized hydrogen and oxygen atoms, what gives these objects their dominant reddish and greenish hues. But this object has, also, a considerable portion of light from the white dwarf that has been reflected by nebular particles. This mechanism makes its color bluer, and distinguishes this from other planetaries with a smaller reflection component.

W.O FLT-110 with dedicated field flattener
EQ6 Pro
ST10XME
Lum : 35min
Red : 35min
Green : 35min
Blue : 35min
5min subs
Total exposure 2h20min

NGC 7635 Bubble Nebula Hubble palette

full resolution

60% of the original size

NGC 7635, also called the Bubble Nebula and Sharpless 162, is a H II region[2] emission nebula in the constellation Cassiopeia. It lies close to the direction of the open cluster Messier 52. The "bubble" is created by the stellar wind from a massive hot, 8.7[2] magnitude young central star, the 15 ± 5 M☉[4] SAO 20575 (BD+60 2522).[7] The nebula is near a giant molecular cloud which contains the expansion of the bubble nebula while itself being excited by the hot central star, causing it to glow.[7] It was discovered in 1787 by Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel.[6] The star SAO 20575 or BD+602522 is thought to have a mass of 10-40 Solar masses.
W.O FLT-110 with dedicated field flattener
EQ6 Pro
ST10XME
Astrodon 5nm Ha filter
Baader 8nm SII filter
Baader 8.5nm OIII filter
Ha: 3h 20min
SII: 4h 20min
OIII:4h
Total exposure 11h40min under near full moon from Kallithea Athens Greece.
Anacortes Image of the Day 08/09/2009

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.

M27, The Dumbbell Nebula final

68% of full resolution



full resolution


L(Ha+Red)/R(Ha+Red)GB
Blue 75min
Green 87min
Red 84 min
Ha 510min

Total exposure 12h 36min

M27 , the Dumbbell Nebula

68% of full resolution


full resolution


This is the colour version of the Dumbbell Nebula with (Ha-Red):G:B technique.

See "Color Imaging of Nebulae using Hydrogen-Alpha Data" by: Robert Gendler

M27 , the Dumbbell Nebula in Hydrogen Alpha Light

invert

68% of full resolution

Full resolution

EQ6,FLT110,ST10XME Ha 5nm 8,5 hours exposure.
The Dumbbell Nebula (also known as Messier 27, M 27, or NGC 6853) is a planetary nebula (PN) in the constellation Vulpecula, at a distance of about 1,360 light years.
This object was the first planetary nebula to be discovered; by Charles Messier in 1764. At its brightness of visual magnitude 7.5 and its diameter of about 8 arcminutes, it is easily visible in binoculars, and a popular observing target in amateur telescopes.
Τελικά κατάφερα να μαζέψω τα φωτόνια που ήθελα....με τη βοήθεια του Φεγγαριού μάζεψα λίγα παραπάνω ,αλλά τι να κάνεις αυτά έχει η ζωή...!
EQ6 EQMOD FLT110 TMB FF ST10XME .
510 λεπτά (10x5min + 46x10min) στο 5nm Ηα της Astrodon ή 8,5 ώρες σε 4 νύχτες στη διάρκεια 2 εβδομάδων!!!
Όλη η επεξεργασία έγινε αποκλειστικά στο CCDStack με μια μικρή επέμβαση στα curves στο PS.
Αποθορυβοποίηση με 33% ΝoiseNinja
Καμία αισθητική ή άλλου είδους επέμβαση στα άστρα.
Την 1η νύχτα από λάθος η κάμερα ήταν τοποθετημένη 90 μοίρες clockwise...για αυτό και έχει γίνει crop στην κεντρική περιοχή .
Anacortes Image of the Day 07/26/2009

NGC 6823, NGC 6820 Open cluster and nebulosity in Vulpecula

NGC 6820 is an emission nebula that surrounds open cluster NGC 6823 in Vulpecula, near M27, the Dumbbell Nebula.

The most striking feature is the trunk-like pillar or dust and gas protruding from the east side of the nebula towards the open cluster, NGC 6823 in the west. The center of the open cluster is about two million years old and is predominantly represented by many young, bright blue stars. Outer parts of the cluster intimately involving pillars of emission nebula NGC 6820, contain even younger stars. The huge pillars of gas and dust are probably formed when surrounding gas and dust is pushed and eroded away by radiation from nearby stars. Remarkable dark globules of gas and dust are also visible in the nebula, much as is seen in the better known Eagle Nebula in Serpens or the Lagoon Nebula in Sagittarius.

Open star cluster NGC 6823 is about 50 light years across and lies about 6000 light years away.

Ha 33x5min
W.O FLT110
SBIG ST10XME_CFW9_Astrodon Ha 5nm
EQ6Pro

NGC 7000 California Nebula

A small part of the NGC7000
24/07/2008 Kallithea Athens Greece

Test shot 2x10min Ha 5nm Astrodon filter
William Optics FLT110
SBIG ST10XME
EQ6 Pro

IC 405 Ha

W.O FLT110
SBIG ST10XME
Astrodon Ha 5nm
EQ6 PRO

8x10min

IC434 The Horsehead Nebula

W. O FLT110
SBIG ST10 XME
15X5MIN Ha

NGC6888 Full