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Tuesday, March 3, 2020

"Two ways to die", an alternative composition


One of the dimmest targets I have ever shot. The supernova remnant Simeis 147 is large and dim but this nebula pair in Auriga is much dimmer. There are very few images about this target around. Photo is taken with Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens and Apogee Alta U16 astro camera.

This is an alternative vertical composition, the horizontal composition can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/03/two-ways-to-die-sh2-216-sh2-221.html
I think this vertica version is little more dynamic as a composition.


Supernova remnant and a planetary nebula in the same field of view
Click for a large photo

Photo is in mapped colors from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen. Image spans vertically about six degrees, (That's equal to 12 full Moons side by side in the sky.) The planetary Nebula Sharpless 216 at top and the supernova remnant Sharpless 221 lays at bottom.

INFO

Sh2-216, the closest planetary nebula to earth ever discovered.

Image spans about six degrees horizontally, at left lays the large and very dim planetary nebula Sharpless 216 (aka Simeis 288, Marsalkova 44, LBN 742, GN 04.41.3)
This planetary nebula is the closest known planetary nebula to Earth, about 390 light years, and also one of the oldest known. Due the old age, it's very diffused, dim and large, apparent diameter is about 1,6 degrees. (Full Moon is about 0,5 degrees wide)

Supernova remnant Sh2-221

At right side of the photo lays a dim nad diffused supernova remnant Sh2-221 (SNR G160.4+02.8, HB9) it locates in constellation Auriga, about one degree West from star Capella. (Doesn't show in my image) The distance from the Earth, 2600 light years, is determined recently at 2007. This object was recognized as a supernova remnant back at seventies.

Technical details

Processing workflow

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
Tokina AT-x f2.8 camera lens

Mount
10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x 2 and an old spotting scope of Meade LX200


Astrodon filters,
5nm H-alpha 3nm S-II and 3nm O-III

Total exposure time 26h

H-alpha, 36 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 12 h
O-III, 33 x 1200 s, binned 2x2 = 11 h
S-II, 9 x 1200 s. binned 2x2 = 3 h


Monday, March 2, 2020

Supernova remnant IC 443 wide field


The imaging season up here 65N will end in a month since we are rapidly running out of darkness. I spend last Friday night with the Jellyfish nebula, IC 443, in Gemini.
The current imaging system takes me deep very fast, Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens, Astrodon narrowband filters and Apogee Alta U16 camera. This combination has turned to be a very nice imaging tool inteed.

IC 443, NGC 2175 & Messier 35
Click for a large image, it's worth it!

Mapped colors from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
A star cluster Messier 35 at upper right, IC 443 at middle left and NGC 2175 at lower right.


H-alpha alone
Click for a large image

3h of light emitted by an ionized hydrogen, H-alpha.

INFO


One of the reasons i took this image is the "Monkey head nebula", NGC 2175, at lower right corner.
I have shot this area with a much longer focal length back in 2015. At my image there is a very faint extended shape visible in my photo. I wanted to see, if I'm able to catch it with my current imaging system as well. This very dim feature is strongly visible in my new photo too! (Monkey head nebula is rotated 180 degrees in large image below.)



Older long focal length photo of NGC 2175 from Spring season 2015, more info here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2015/03/ngc-2174-monkey-head-nebula-project.html


IC 443

IC 443 (also known as the Jellyfish Nebula and Sharpless 248 (Sh2-248)) is a Galactic supernova remnant (SNR) in the constellation Gemini. It locates visually near the star Eta Geminorum at distance of about 5000 light years.
IC 443 may be the remains of a supernova that occurred 3,000 - 30,000 years ago. The same supernova event likely created the neutron star CXOU J061705.3+222127, the collapsed remnant of the stellar core. IC 443 is one of the best-studied cases of supernova remnants interacting with surrounding molecular clouds

Technical details

Processing workflow

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
Tokina AT-x f2.8 camera lens

Mount
10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x 2 and an old spotting scope of Meade LX200
Astrodon filters,
5nm H-alpha 3nm S-II and 3nm O-III

Total exposure time 
H-alpha, 9 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 3 h
O-III, 3 x 1200 s, binned 2x2 = 1 h
S-II, 3 x 1200 s. binned 2x2 = 1 h




Sunday, March 1, 2020

Two ways to die, Sh2-216 & Sh2-221, Supernova remnant and a planetary nebula


This must be one of the dimmest targets I have shot. The supernova remnant Simeis 147 is large and dim but this nebula pair in Auriga is much dimmer. There are very few images about this target around. Photo is taken with Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens and Apogee Alta U16 astro camera.


Supernova remnant and a planetary nebula in the same field of view
Click for a large photo, it's worth it!

Mapped colors from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
NOTE, the apparent size of the Full Moon is marked at lower left corner.


INFO

Sh2-216, the closest planetary nebula to earth ever discovered.

Image spans about six degrees horizontally, at left lays the large and very dim planetary nebula Sharpless 216 (aka Simeis 288, Marsalkova 44, LBN 742, GN 04.41.3)
This planetary nebula is the closest known planetary nebula to Earth, about 390 light years, and also one of the oldest known. Due the old age, it's very diffused, dim and large, apparent diameter is about 1,6 degrees. (Full Moon is about 0,5 degrees wide)

Supernova remnant Sh2-221

At right side of the photo lays a dim nad diffused supernova remnant Sh2-221 (SNR G160.4+02.8, HB9) it locates in constellation Auriga, about one degree West from star Capella. (Doesn't show in my image) The distance from the Earth, 2600 light years, is determined recently at 2007. This object was recognized as a supernova remnant back at seventies.


H-alpha image with labels
Click for a large photo



Technical details

Processing workflow

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
Tokina AT-x f2.8 camera lens

Mount
10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x 2 and an old spotting scope of Meade LX200


Astrodon filters,
5nm H-alpha 3nm S-II and 3nm O-III

Total exposure time 26h

H-alpha, 36 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 12 h
O-III, 33 x 1200 s, binned 2x2 = 11 h
S-II, 9 x 1200 s. binned 2x2 = 3 h




Orientation in Auriga






Sunday, February 23, 2020

Cederblad 214, the Cosmic Question mark in visual colors

I have published this target in mapped colors at 9.2. 2020, it can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/02/new-photo-of-cederblad-214-cosmic.html

This photo was taken with my "new" imaging system. I managed to mate an old Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera optics with the Apogee Alta U16 astro camera and filter wheel. Some angle grinder was needed to have enough back focus... More info here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-frankenstein-monster-my-current.html

This photo of Cosmic Question Mark has a great symbolic value for me. The cosmic curiosity is the very reason I'm doing this difficult, and sometimes frustrating, form of nature photographing. 


Cederblad 214 and Sharpless 170,  ? "
Please, click for a full size image

Photo is in natural colors combined from narrowband channels. An ionized hydrogen, H-alpha, is emitting deep red light and it's dominating the color scheme. Bluish hues are from an ionized oxygen, O-III.


A two panel mosaic panorama to SNR CTB1
Please, click for a full size image

This composition in mapped colors can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/02/panorama-mosaic-cederblad-214-sharpless.html


INFO


This cosmic question mark, in constellation Cepheus, contains following objects; At top, Cederblad 214(Ced 214) surrounded by NGC 7822, a dot like nebula at the bottom is known as Sharpless 170,(Sh2-170). Image spans over Five degrees vertically. Distance from my observatory, is ~2750 light years and it spans about 40 light years.


Orientation in the sky


Cederblad 214 can  be seen at upper left corner. Image shows its location related to constellation Cepheus.


Technical details

Processing workflow

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
Tokina AT-x f2.8 camera lens

Mount
10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x 2 and an old spotting scope of Meade LX200


Astrodon filters,
5nm H-alpha 3nm S-II and 3nm O-III

Total exposure time

H-alpha, 12 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 4 h
O-III, 1x 1200 s, binned 2x2 = 20 min.
S-II, 1 x 1200 s. binned 2x2 = 20 min.