Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Jellyfish Nebula, IC 443, a supernova remnant in Gemini
This winter season has been worst I have seen in fifteen years. We have now had almost constant cloud cover for about three months. There was a partially clear sky for couple of nights and I managed to use it, since my observatory is located just next to my home. The night between 18. and 19. of January was kind of clear but the seeing and transparency was very poor. I was about to toss away all of the frames for IC 443 but since I haven't anything else to process, I kept them. Here are the results, I did the best I could with a low quality material. This object will need much more exposures in future.
IC 443, the Jellyfish Nebula SNR
INFO
IC 443, Jellyfish Nebula, Sharpless 248 (Sh2-248), is a galactic supernova remnant in the constellation Gemini. It locates near the star Eta Geminorum (A bright star at middle right) at distance of about 5000 light years. This supernova event very likely created a neutron star (CXOU J061705.3+222127), a collapsed remnant of the stellar core. Nebula spans about 50-70 light years. This photo has an angular size of about one arc minute. (Full Moon has an apparent size of ~30 arc minutes.)
An older wide field photo of the same object
Original blog post of this image with technical details can be seen HERE
A color version of IC 443
Colors from Sulfur and Oxygen are borrowed from the photo above
Sulfur and Oxygen. Oxygen and Sulfur are from an older wide field photo.
An experimental starless view
color is from the Hydrogen alpha emission, the strongest emission line of the hydrogen.
Technical details
Processing work flow
Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.
Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.
Deconvolution with a CCDStack2 Positive Constraint, 33 iterations, added at 50% weight
Color combine in PS CS3
Levels and curves in PS CS3.
Imaging optics
Celestron Edge HD 1100 @ f7 with 0,7 focal reducer for Edge HD 1100 telescope
Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x2
Astrodon filter, 5nm H-alpha
Exposure times
H-alpha, 12 x 1200s = 4h
Monday, January 26, 2015
New exhibition in Oulu, Finland
Astronomical nature photographing, an exhibition
Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 12-18.00 every week until the end of the February.
Kajaaninkatu 13, Oulu, welcome!
A MAP
Some photos from the exhibition, many new photos as a high quality aluminium prints
A photographic print of Veil nebula at light of ionized Oxygen only, 30x40cm
At to, an aluminium print of the Tulip nebula, 58x70cm. At bottom, Sharpless 132, as an aluminium print, 50x70cm.
Sunday, January 11, 2015
Veil Nebula in light of ionized oxygen only
This must be the worst winter season ever! Last time we have had clear skies, up here 65N, was at end of the October, almost two and half months ago! Now it's cloudy, -13celsius (~8 fahrenheit) with a storming wind to a top of that. Next ten days will be no better by weather forecast. Few words comes to in my mind but I say only one, frustrated.
Veil Nebula in O-III light only
Click for the large image
This photo of the Veil Nebula supernova remnant in Cygnus shows only an emission from the ionized oxygen (O-III). All the stars are suppressed to show the actual shapes of the ionization front better.
The ionized oxygen, O-III, glows at wavelength of 500,7 nanometer. To a human eye it shows as a turquoise color.
Info
Veil Nebula is a cloud of ionized gas and dust, leftovers from an exploded star. The star exploded some 5000-8000 years ago at distance of about 1470 light years. This, relatively faint target, is difficult to image due the large angular diameter, about three degrees, and a dense star field.
Some closeup photos in emission of ionized oxygen only
IC 1340 in ionized Oxygen light, O-III
Pickering's Triangle in ionized Oxygen light, O-III
Eastern Veil in ionized Oxygen light, O-III
Witch Broom Nebula in ionized Oxygen light, O-III
The Veil Nebula in colors
This photo of the Veil nebula shows it in full colors. Colors are combined from the emission of ionized elements, hydrogen, sulfur and oxygen.(H-alpha, S-II and O-III) More info about this photo of mine can be see HERE
Thursday, January 8, 2015
Astro Anarchy gets published
CNET article by Michelle Starr about my "It looks like..." photo pairs
You can read the story from HERE
A sample image, the Twirling Dancer
Melotte 15 cluster in IC 1805, info about this photo can be seen HERE
All my "It looks like..." image pairs can be found from THIS blog post.
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