Category Daysprings Observatory

IC 1396 – The Elephants Trunk

IC 1396 in Constellation Cepheus at ~ 2,400 ly 

Home Observatory Clinton TN, AP130GTX Refractor, QHY268M CMOS Camera, AP1200GTO Mount.  Approximately 10.6 hours total exposure through Ha, O[III], and S[II] emission line filters.

 

 

October 2023 – The Pacman Nebula

NGC 281 / IC 11 / Sh2-184 – Commonly called the Pacman Nebula. Located in the Perseus Spiral Arm of the Milkyway. Taken over multiple nights totally 26 hours of total emission line exposure time from Clinton, TN.
Close up crop showing some of the interesting Bok Globules; dark nebulas of dense cosmic dust and gas from which new star formation can begin.

January 2023 – Sh2-261

Sh2-261 AKA Lower’s Nebula – 10 Hours of Exposure time from Clinton, TN

Sh2-261, also called Lower’s Nebula in honor of Harold and Charles Lower who discovered it in 1939,  is located between the Orion and Perseus arms of the Milkyway.  It is dominated by H-alpha emission with little O[III] emission.

Starless Rosette Nebula – NGC 2237 / Caldwell 49

AP130GTX with QHY268M CMOS Camera on AP1200GTO Mount. Total Exposure time of ~17.5 hours comprised of 105 x 5 minute sub frames. Images captured from Clinton, TN.

Located roughly 5,000 light years from earth, the Rosette Nebula is approximately 130 light years in diameter and is home to about 2,500 new born stars in this star forming complex. For a more down to earth factoid, the Rosette Nebula is the official astronomical object of the State of Oklahoma as passed by the Legislature in 2019.

2021 December – IC 417 The Spider Nebula

IC 417 – The Spider Nebula
IC 417 Annotated
  • Image Acquisition Location: Clinton, TN; Home Observatory
  • Scope: AP130GTX
  • Mount: AP1200GTO
  • Camera: QHY268M
  • Image Scale: ~0.92 arcsec/pixel
  • Integration Time: ~15.8 Hours

November 2021 – IC 1848 The Soul Nebula

The Soul Nebula IC 1848
The Soul Nebula Annotated
  • Image Acquisition Location: Clinton, TN; Home Observatory
  • Scope: AP130GTX
  • Mount: AP1200GTO
  • Camera: QHY268M
  • Image Scale: ~0.92 arcsec/pixel
  • Integration Time: ~15.3 Hours