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Friday, December 4, 2020

Cassiopeia mosaic gets larger, now up to Cepheus

 I started this imaging project at Spring season 2020m now I have shot more frames for this active region of the sky. At center of the photo lays the Bubble and cave nebula At lower left locates the Cederblad 214 and just few degrees to right from it lays the supernova remnant CTB1, it can be seen as a thin ring like formation. The Wizard nebula can be seen at upper right corner of the image. Note. there is a moon as a scale at a lower left corner of the image. This is a large area of space and I I have now join this mosaic image to a large one from 2012. I will continue this mosaic soon!


There is an interesting looking dim and large circular formation at center left, there is a bright star at almost center of it. Could this be an uncataloged supernova remnant?

Total exposure time is now around 150 hours, if older exposures are included. with my current wide field imaging system build around the Tokina AT-x 300 mm f2.8 camera optics.  Astro Don 50x50 mm square  narrowband filters, 5nm H-alpha, 3nm O-III and 3nm S-II. Camera is a massive Apogee Alta U16.

This mosaic has now twenty individual frame stitched seamlessly together, 


From cassiopeia to cepheus
Click for a much large image, it's worth it! (1400 x 2200 pixels)

Image is in mapped colors from a light from the ionized elements, hydrogen = green, sulfur = red and oxygen = blue. NOTE, there is an image of the Moon at the same scale in lower left corner.

Orientation
Click for a much large image



Previous version of the mosaic
Click for a much large image


Start of this imaging project at this year
Click for a large image


Image info, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/03/from-bubble-to-cave-nebula-area.html


Sunday, November 29, 2020

Cassiopeia mosaic gets larger

 


I started this imaging project at Spring season 2020m now I have shot more frames for this active region of the sky. At center of the photo lays the Bubble and cave nebula At lower left locates the Cederblad 214 and just few degrees to right from it lays the supernova remnant CTB1, it can be seen as a thin ring like formation. The Wizard nebula can be seen at upper right corner of the image. Note. there is a moon as a scale at a lower left corner of the image. This is a large area of space and I will join this mosaic image to a large one, I have shot it back in 2012. 

There is an interesting looking dim circular formation at upper left, there is a bright star at almost center of it. Could this be an uncataloged supernova remnant?

Total exposure time is now around 50 hours with my current wide field imaging system build around the Tokina AT-x 300 mm f2.8 camera optics.  Astro Don 50x50 mm square  narrowband filters, 5nm H-alpha, 3nm O-III and 3nm S-II. Camera is a massive Apogee Alta U16. This mosaic has now ten frames.


Clouds of Cassiopeia
Click for a much large image, it's worth it!

Image is in mapped colors from a light from the ionized elements, hydrogen = green, sulfur = red and oxygen = blue.


Previous version of the mosaic
Click for a large image

More info about this image here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/03/from-cassiopeia-to-cepheus.html


Start of the imaging project
Click for a large image


Image info, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/03/from-bubble-to-cave-nebula-area.html




Monday, November 23, 2020

A new photo of Sharpless 132 (Sh2-132)

 I have shot this beautiful target in Cepheus several times with a different focal length instruments. This time I have shot it with my current setup build around Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8   https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-frankenstein-monster-my-current.html


Sharpless 132 in Cepheus
Click for a large image

NOTE, An apparent size of the Moon is marked as a scale at bottom of the picture frame. This is a large object! There are very few images out of this dim and diffused supernova remnant around. Image is in mapped colours, from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulphur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen. 

A closeup 
Click for a large image


Older shots with a large instrument
Click for a large image


Image is shot at 2019 and it's a four panel mosaic, more info in this blog post, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2019/02/sharpless-132-sh2-132.html



Image is shot at 2014 and it's a four panel mosaic, more info in this blog post, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2014/11/a-furious-cosmic-horse-gets-blinded-by.html


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, 6 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 2 h
O-III, 3 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 1 h
S-II, 3 x 1200 s, binned 2x2 = 1 h



Sunday, November 22, 2020

G65.3+5.7 , large supernova remnant in Cygnus, project continues

A large piece of an older mosaic image added, now the panorama covers sky from the Cresscent and Tulip Nebula all to wat to this large supernova remnant. 

Previous version was with six frames and it can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/11/g65357-large-supernova-remnant-in.html

Here is a first single frame version of this SNR, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/11/a-supernova-remnant-in-cygnus-g65357-snr.html

This is a rarely imaged target, this is also one of the most difficult targets, I have ever shot. Due to a very dense star field, large angular dimension and a very diffused structure this is much more difficult target, than a Simeis 147 supernova remnant in Taurus but just little easier than an other dim SNR in a same area of sky, the Cygnus Shell, W63.  

Total exposure time of 60h was needed to have this image. The imaging system is very fast since it's undersampled and that's good when I want capture a very large, dim and diffused targets like this one. My current imaging system, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-frankenstein-monster-my-current.html

G65.3+5.7 SNR has a large angular dimensions, than brighter and more famous supernova remnant in Cygnus, the Veil Nebula The angular dimensions are about 3x4 degrees. This is a very difficult target, it has a very low surface brightness and the starfield is extremely dense in this part of the Milky Way.


NOTE, the "noise" in the photos is not a noise at all, it's glow from countless stars,
it can be seen best in full size photo! 


From a black hole to the supernova remnant!
Please, click for a large image, it's worth it!

NOTE, An apparent size of the Moon is marked as a scale at bottom of the picture frame. This is a large object! There are very few images out of this dim and diffused supernova remnant around. Image is in mapped colours, from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulphur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen. 

Next to the Tulip Nebula (A bright yellowish dot a left side of  the image) lays the micro quasar 
Cygnus X-1, a black hole candidate! 

Cygnus X-1 is marked at the image. The black hole it self can not be seen but we can see the disc of gas twirling in the balck hole. The speed of gas is so high that it turns to radiation. This star like object emits radiation in full spectrum from gamma radiation to radio frequencies and everything between.



G65.3+5.7 SNR as a single frame
Please, click for a large image, it's worth it!

What a starfield!

In visual colors
click for a large image

An ionized hydrogen emits deep red light, blue/green hues are form an ionized oxygen


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 for 12 frames

H-alpha, 24 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 28 h
O-III, 24 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 18 h
S-II, 12 x 1200 s, binned 2x2 = 14 h