Way down south (-40 degrees) in the constellation Centaurus lies Cometary Globule 12. This is another rarely imaged southern target. It’s almost redundant to call it a faint molecular cloud, but it is. Thankfully, the exceedingly dark skies of Chile don’t have any light pollution to compete with the few photons coming from CG12. I … More CG12: the southern Dark Shark?
I find it surprising that there are only 11 images of this object on astrobin, as it is a bright emission nebula with very clear distinctions between the narrowband channels. Maybe this image will help bring it to others’ attention. The little guy on the right (west) is known as BRAN 7B. SIMBAD says it’s … More Sh2-301 is a southern gem
Let galaxy season begin! Okay, Orion is still up, but the galaxies of Leo are beginning to swing into view for those of us in the northern hemisphere. And one of the westernmost of these bright galaxies is NGC2903. It is well positioned right now and for the next few months. It is a fine … More NGC2903 welcomes you to galaxy season
Many objects in the southern skies get no respect. Or at least fewer images are taken of them, as only about 11% of the world’s population lives south of the equator. RCW19 (Gum 10) is a prime example of an object that everyone would have on their checklist if it were further north. This is … More RCW19 gets no respect
No matter how you choose to spell “Boogeyman” (Boogyman? Boogieman?), LDN1622 is a stunning knot of dust to image. Part of Barnard’s Loop, this smaller feature is incredibly photogenic. LDN1622 is the main dark nebula in the image. The smaller one just below it is LDN1621 (no funny name here). You can see a slight … More The Boogeyman Nebula (LDN1622) is hard to spell
Sh2-311 is sometimes called The Skull and Crossbones Nebula, though this is a holdover from the visual era, and the similarity doesn’t really stand out in an image. It is a southern hemisphere gem in the constellation Puppis. The OIII and SII are surprisingly bright, making this a great object for mapped-color narrowband imaging. This … More Sh2-311
Due south of the Rosette Nebula sit several Sharpless objects that are not often imaged. And who can blame the astrophotographer, with so many top notch objects nearby (M42, Rosette, Horsehead, M78… you name it). The northernmost and brightest (relatively!) of these is Sh2-280, presented here. I think it’s underrated simply due to its proximity … More Sh2-280 doesn’t get enough respect
In total contrast with the last object I posted (Sh2-227), NGC281 is very bright and very frequently imaged. You’ll find many images of it, but it’s still a great object to re-visit every few years with new equipment and new processing skills/tools. Because it’s bright, it’s easy to shortchange the exposure time. This year, I … More NGC281 (“Pac-Man” nebula): bright and often-imaged
You don’t see a lot of images of Sh2-227. It’s really faint, and it is outshone by nearby IC405 and 410. I like an underdog, so I wanted to capture a solid image of it to see what structure I could reveal. I didn’t even try OIII, as my understanding is that it is not … More Sh2-227: faint and rarely imaged
I’d almost forgotten I took this image back in September, as I’d gotten so busy with other projects. Sh2-216 is the closest planetary nebula to us, at only about 400 light years away. It is very faint and a real challenge to image. This field of view is almost 5 degrees wide, so you can … More Sh2-216 and friends (Sh2-217, Sh2-219, Sh2-221, and LBN755)
Deep-sky Imaging 