C31 - Flaming Star Nebula
M81 & M82
NGC 2264 - Christmas Tree Cluster & Cone Nebula
The first two photos above were shot at my dark sky site. A gorgeously clear, but very cold, night. We began imaging at 24F (7 PM) and finished up at 21F around 11 PM. The last one was shot from home and suffered from a lot of light pollution. It would be fun to try again from a dark sight.
The flaming start nebula (C31) is a very large emission/reflection nebula. This was one of those photos I took on pure faith. A few marker stars that told me I was on target, but I couldn't see any of the nebulosity until I got into post-processing.
M81 & 82 are a beautiful pair of galaxies about 11.5 million light years away. Messier 81 is the face on galaxy and has the classic "grand design" structure. Messier 82 is the smaller of the two and is known as a star-burst galaxy. Interestingly, the two interact with each other and the active star formation going on in M82 has resulted from interactions with M81. Near the core of of M81 there are more stars being formed than in all of our Milky Way.
The last photo is the Christmas Tree Cluster and the Cone Nebula. The Christmas Tree is plain to see, but the nebulosity is much tougher. Again, one of the photos I took on faith. The cone nebula is near the top of the tree and points downward toward the tree.
Photo Details
C31 - Flaming Star Nebula
January 24, 2014
Orion 8" Astrograph on VX Mount
Nikon D3100 Camera - ISO 1600
Coma Corrector & Orion Skyglow Filter
50 sub frames at 1.5 minutes/frame
Total Exposure Time = 1 hour 15 minutes
Image Stacking in Deep Sky Tracker
Image Processing in PhotoShop
Messier 81 & 82
January 24, 2014
Orion 8" Astrograph on VX Mount
Nikon D3100 Camera - ISO 1600
Coma Corrector & Orion Skyglow Filter
59 sub frames at 1.5 minutes/frame
Total Exposure Time = 1 hour 28 minutes 30 seconds
Image Stacking in Deep Sky Tracker
Image Processing in PhotoShop
NGC 2264 - Christmas Tree Cluster and Cone Nebula
January 20, 2014
Orion 8" Astrograph on VX Mount
Nikon D3100 Camera - ISO 1600
Coma Corrector & Orion Skyglow Filter
120 sub frames at 1.5 minutes/frame
Total Exposure Time = 3 hours
Image Stacking in Deep Sky Tracker
Image Processing in PhotoShop
M81 is my favorite of these, it reminds me of the joy, awe, and wonder I felt as a child when I played with my spirograph. It is so simple, yet infinitely complex. I could stare at it for a long long time and continue to be amazed!
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