The RED & the BLUE

Taking a slight break from "pure dust", I decided on something a bit more... COLORFUL!

I wanted to bring out the RED hydrogen alpha of the Cone Nebula region, along with the BLUE reflection nebulosity around IC 2169. The Cone is actually pretty small (upper center) in this wide field image. Below the cone is a nebulous region referred to as the "Fox Fur".

This field may not be as dusty as some of my recent targets, but it contains lots of interesting structures, including Hubble's Variable Nebula at upper left (white "V" shape object).

This image was shot during my 4 night stay at the recent Eldorado Star Party.

FSQ 106EDX f/3.6
STL11000M -25C
HaLRGB 75,135,30,30,30
CCDStack, PixInsight, CS5

Next up... more dust!

The Bird and the Sisters

I recently attended the Eldorado Star Party in Southwest Texas. I had a terrific 4 nights of crystal clear skies. It was my first time attending and I had a great time.

Before heading out to dark skies to do my photography, I always plan what objects I want to shoot and make careful notes regarding composition, etc. When I was looking at some image data I shot at Okie-Tex back in October, I noticed my M45 and Vdb27 targets were very close and if I were to shoot a couple more panels, I could create a very large mosaic of this area in Taurus.

And so on my recent trip to ESP, I did : )

So here is a 5 panel mosaic. This area is just FILLED with dust! I love the dusty tendrils that seem to reach towards M45 (the Seven Sisters) in the upper left. In fact, the Sisters are so attractive it appears they have caught the attention of a dusty bird that shoots a glance their way (LBN777 in the center).

FSQ 106EDX f/3.6
STL11000M -25C
approx 18 hrs of exposure
CCDStack, PixInsight, CS5

Looking back over my last few objects I have lot of dust and reflection targets (okay, they ARE my faves). So next I'll try to do something a bit different... maybe.