The Great Orion Nebula
The Great Orion Nebula (M42) is a true showpiece in the night sky. It is easily visible to the naked eye as a fuzzy patch in the sword of Orion, and is a beautiful sight in telescopes of all sizes. It lies fairly close to our part of the galaxy, lying some 1500 light years distant. The center portion contains a tight grouping of stars called the Trapezium. M43 lies just above the Trapezium region, and another bright reflection nebula called The Running Man Nebula is near the top of this frame.
This image is a blend of RGB data with Hydrogen-Alpha data. The RGB was blended with the H-alpha to form an artificial luminance layer, and the H-alpha was blended into the red channel of the colour layer.
Takahashi Sky 90 at f/4.5
SBIG STL-4020M (self-guided)
Takahashi EM-200
Hutech LPS filter
H-Alpha: 2h20m (20 minute subexposures)
RGB: 25m, 35m, 10m (5 minute subexposures)
Processed with Maxim/DL and Photoshop CS3
Noel Carboni's Astronomy Tools
The H-Alpha data by itself is here.
The Great Orion Nebula
The Great Orion Nebula (M42) is a true showpiece in the night sky. It is easily visible to the naked eye as a fuzzy patch in the sword of Orion, and is a beautiful sight in telescopes of all sizes. It lies fairly close to our part of the galaxy, lying some 1500 light years distant. The center portion contains a tight grouping of stars called the Trapezium. M43 lies just above the Trapezium region, and another bright reflection nebula called The Running Man Nebula is near the top of this frame.
This image is a blend of RGB data with Hydrogen-Alpha data. The RGB was blended with the H-alpha to form an artificial luminance layer, and the H-alpha was blended into the red channel of the colour layer.
Takahashi Sky 90 at f/4.5
SBIG STL-4020M (self-guided)
Takahashi EM-200
Hutech LPS filter
H-Alpha: 2h20m (20 minute subexposures)
RGB: 25m, 35m, 10m (5 minute subexposures)
Processed with Maxim/DL and Photoshop CS3
Noel Carboni's Astronomy Tools
The H-Alpha data by itself is here.