space – Page 3 – Semper Iuvenis Photography

vdB 16 a Reflection in Aires

LBN 746 is a reflection nebula located approximately 947 light-years away in the constellation Aries. It is part of the Lynds’ Catalogue of Bright Nebulae. It is often identified as a portion of the larger vdB 16 (van den Bergh 16) nebulosity.

LBN 746 is embedded within a dense region of cosmic dust. It is surrounded by dark nebulae. These include LDN 1452 and several Barnard objects such as Barnard 202, 203, 204, and 206.

LBN 746 is situated near the border of Aries and Taurus. It lies about 7 degrees northwest of the Pleiades star cluster.
For Astro photographers, this region is known for its complex mix of “light and dust.” Capturing the subtle interactions between the blue reflection light of vdB 16 is a detailed process. Observing the surrounding dark molecular clouds requires time. Long exposure photography is necessary.

Image acquisition and session automation using APT. This image consists of approximately 12 hours of exposure. The equipment used included an RC8 telescope and an ASI071MC Pro camera. They were mounted on a skywatcher Eq6r Pro Mount. Subframe calibration, alignment, integration, and processing performed manually in PixInsight. Astrobin link for all the details.

Exploring multiple Sharpless targets in 1 frame – Sh2-192, 193, 194

3 Sharpless targets in 1 frame - Sh2-192, 193, 194

An uncommon bonus is that this image includes three members of the Sharpless Catalog of 313 HII regions. These are emission nebulae in the northern hemisphere. They are Sh2-192; Sh2-193; and Sh2-194. Sh2-192 is the very faint nebula in the middle of the image. Sh2-193 is the larger, still faint, nebula just below Sh2-192. Sh2-194 is the larger bright ball of gas to the right of both of the others.

Sh2-192 is an emission nebula located in the constellation Cassiopeia. Sh2-192 is part of a small group of nebulae. This group includes Sh2-193 and Sh2-194. They are located near the larger and well-known Heart and Soul Nebulae (IC 1805 and IC 1848).

Image captured using APT for session management and automation. Processed manually in PixInsight to its natural color.

See the Astrobin link for gear used, exposures, annotated image, etc.

The Bear Claw Planetary Nebula – Sh2-200

This is round two for me on this target. The first experienced significant reflections from the Antlia Quad Broadband LP filter. So, I’m back at it during the full moon using the Radian Ultra Quad-Band narrow band filter.
This beautiful but faint planetary nebula was imaged from my driveway at home. It was discovered in 1983 by the astronomers Herbert Hartl, Johann Dengel, and Ronald Weinberger. In 1987, further narrowband observations detected a large faint outer halo extending further than the central shell. However, it wasn’t confirmed to be a true genuine planetary nebula until 2017.

It has been given the name of Bear Claw Nebula for the imprint found on the central shell. Looks a lot like a bears print. This could be the faintest object I’ve ever attempted to image. After many hours of integration the Nebula began to appear. Individual subs showed absolutely nothing but stars and it is an impressive starfield! This is 15 hours of exposure using 156 6 minute subs.

Imaging sessions controlled and automated by Astro Photography Tool (APT 4.65.2). Two nights from 11/3/2025 using 360″ exposures on a RC8 telescope and ASI071MC camera atop an Eq6r Pro mount. 15 hours of exposure. Processed manually in Pixinsight.

LBN 878 in Orion

The main object in this image is LBN 878. It is the red and brown nebula dominating the field. The full nebula complex is a combination of emission and dark nebulae. The complex blends emission nebulae. They glow with ionized gas. Dark nebulae obscure background starlight. Together, they create a striking celestial portrait.

Included in this overall object structure is LBN 879 which is in association with the variable star FU Ori. LBN 879 is the small bright nebula in the center and is also known as CED 59. The dark nebula Barnard 35 encompasses the LBN 879 structure. The very dark portion of the red part of LBN 878 is the dark nebula LDN 1594. Here’s the annotated astrobin image. It has all the acquisition detail and identifies every object in the photograph.

Barnard 35 and its illuminated rim (LBN 878) are part of the larger Sharpless 264 (Sh2-264) region. This area is commonly called the Lambda Orionis Ring.

This colossal star-forming complex combines a giant molecular cloud. It also features an expansive H II region. These elements are centered around the massive star Lambda Orionis. The yellow-tinged Cederblad 59 nebula (LBN 879) envelops FU Orionis. It serves as a visual anchor within Barnard 35’s dark clouds. This nebula illustrates the dynamic processes of stellar birth and evolution in this active Orion neighborhood.

I took this photograph during a full moon from my driveway in the hills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. I used a skywatcher Esprit 120ED scope. I paired it with an ASI 2600MC camera cooled to 15f and an Antlia Quad Broadband light pollution filter. The kit sits atop a skywatcher Eq6r Pro mount. APT controls the image acquisition and automation. Pixinsight used for image calibration, alignment, integration, and processing.

Exploring The Great Lacerta Nebula – Sh2-126

Sh2-126, also known as the Great Lacerta Nebula, is a large red emission nebula located in the constellation Lacerta. It is part of the massive star-forming region Lacerta OB1, approximately 1,200 light-years from Earth. The nebula’s glowing hydrogen gas is ionized by the intense ultraviolet radiation from the bright, blue star 10 Lacertae.

A unique feature is a “stellar funnel” in the center. It appears greyish in this image as it reflects light from nearby stars. It is part of the LBN 437 molecular cloud. Another striking feature is a bright reflection nebula associated with the young star V375 Lacertae, which also produces Herbig-Haro objects.

APT managed and controlled my imaging sessions. It helped acquire 148 300s subframes. This amounts to a touch over 12 hours of exposure during our few clear nights in October. PixInsight was used to calibrate, debayer, integrate, and process to its natural color.

Astrobin link for the details.

Sh2-263 – The Strawberry Nebula

The SH2-263 region, aka the Strawberry Nebula, is located approximately 1,300 light years away in the Orion constellation. This region contains multiple classified objects. The most prominent are the red emission nebula SH2-263 and the blue reflection nebula vdB 38.

The central star, HD34989, is relatively young and energetic. It ionizes the hydrogen that makes up SH2-263. It illuminates the local molecular cloud to create the blue reflection nebula.

Astrobin link for acquisition details and an annotated image.

Sh2-154 a Molecular Hydrogen Cloud in Cepheus

Sh2-154 is a large emission nebula in the constellation Cepheus, located approximately 3,260 light-years away, within a star-forming region. It is cataloged in the Sharpless catalog. This nebula is noted for being a faint, but sizable, region of double-ionized hydrogen. It is surrounded by dust. The giant B-type star (LS III +60 28) is responsible for ionizing the nebula.

Sh2-154 is situated in the same larger star-forming complex as the more famous Cave Nebula, also known as Sh2-155. It is often pictured alongside Sh2-155 in wide-field astrophotography. The ionizing radiation from (LS III +60 28) may be compressing nearby molecular clouds. This action could potentially trigger the birth of new stars. The open cluster NGC 7419 is located close to Sh2-154. Because Sh2-154 is an emission nebula, it appears mostly red in images and is effectively captured using a hydrogen-alpha filter.

I use APT for image acquisition control and automation. The Skywatcher Esprit 120ED f7 840mm fl telescope was paired with the ZWO ASI2600MC camera. It was atop an Eq6r Pro mount. Together, they collected the 151 5 minute light frames over three nights in Sept 2025. I used PixInsight to create and process the image. Astrobin link for acquisition details.

Sh2-86 Cloud Sculpting Star Cluster

Sh2-86 is a faint emission nebula in the constellation Vulpecula, located approximately 6,000 light-years from Earth. It contains the young, hot open star cluster NGC 6823. This cluster illuminates the surrounding nebula. It gives the nebula its distinctive shape.

The nebula has “pillar-like” structures. These structures are similar to “elephant trunks.” It also has Bok globules. These globules are denser regions of gas shielded from the intense radiation of the young stars.

This image consists of 81 exposures. Each exposure was 5 minutes long. They were taken from my driveway with an Esprit 120ED telescope and ZWO ASI2600MC camera. Image acquisition using APT. Image processed manually in PixInsight. Acquisition details in this astrobin link.

Discovering the clouds of LBN 552 in Cepheus

LBN 552 is an object listed in the Lynds’ Catalogue of Bright Nebulae. This catalogue, compiled by Beverly T. Lynds, lists various bright nebulae observed throughout the night sky.

LBN 552 is an extensive molecular cloud complex. It is very faint and located in the constellation Cepheus, about 600 light-years from earth. It is known for being one of the dimmest objects in the Lynds Bright Nebula catalog. It is often imaged together with the dark nebula LDN 1228. The pair are sometimes informally called the “Fighting Dragons“. It’s essentially a cloud of dust reflecting the light of nearby stars.

LBN 552 is classified as a “bright” nebula in the Lynds catalog. However, in practice, it is very faint. It is challenging to observe or image due to its diffuse nature. It contains a mixture of diffuse dark and light nebulosity. Most images of this cloud complex I’ve seen were bought from a service. Others were imaged from a remote hosting site. Very few taken from a backyard with a personal telescope.

This image is a touch over 11 hrs of exposure acquired from my driveway using APT running on a NUC. Esprit 120ED telescope f/7 at 640mm paired with the ASI 2600MC camera atop a Skywatcher Eq6r Pro mount. Processed manually using PixInsight. All of the acquisition detail here in the astrobin version.

Sh2-82 – The Little Cocoon in Sagitta

Also known as the little cocoon nebula. This is due to its resemblance to IC 5146 – The Cocoon Nebula. It is also called The Little Trifid Nebula. This is because it looks a bit like Messier 20 – The Trifid Nebula. Sh2-82 has a lot to offer. The reflection nebula surrounds the bright red emission nebula with a flare off the one side.

A long dust lane runs diagonally through the image, blocking the light of most of the stars behind it. This provides the contrast for the entire image.

Imaged with an RC8 telescope and ASI071MC camera, this image contains 100 5 minute subs. Image acquisition via APT and processed manually in PixInsight. Image acquisition details.