IC348, M76, M67, M106 (2020-2022)

These are images I took over the last 18 months that I never posted.  I could never get them to look just right and so never posted them.  But this is a blog, not a gallery.  These are my observations as I have them.  I don't post everything, but here are some things I did and want to remember.

 Each image was taken with the 203mm Synta-ONTC Newtonion and Atik 460EXC.

M76 (Fall 2017)

I gathered data for this image over four nights in September and October.  M76 is found in our constellation Perseus.  Looking back, I should have taken much longer OIII subs.  I started out with 8-minute subs for narrowband, but the extended lobes of the nebula remain mostly invisible without longer exposures.  For the last Ha, I switched to 20-minute subs.

This is 31x480 in OIII, 9x480 in Ha, and 14x1200 in Ha.  Camera was the SXVF-H9.   Telescope was the CFF 290 Classical Cassegrain at eff. f/8.1.

M76 (October 2, 2011)

This is M76.  It is a planetary nebula in the constellation Perseus.  It is colorful, with red emission from hydrogen and nitrogen and blue emission from oxygen.  It is a beauty!

Sometimes, everything works.  The night of October 2 was clear and cool.  The air was still.  I had taken my camera and off-axis guider apart and put them back together in a better way.  I had tightened everything down.  M76 is a fairly bright target.  What you see here is probably near the resolution limit of this scope and camera.  If I can, I would like to get another three or four hours on this lovely object and see if I can make the extended lobes brighter and more defined.

The image above is a wide field and will not be viewed at 100% if you click on it.  Here is a 100% view:

Telescope: Orion 10" f/4.7 Newtonian and Baader RCC1
Camera and Exposure: SXVF-H9C, 14x10'
Filter: IDAS-LPS2
Guiding: SX Lodestar and SX OAG
Mount: Takahashi NJP
Software: Nebulosity, Maxim DL, Photoshop CS3
Location: The Woodlands, TX