NGC 1491 |
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| In Greek mythology, Perseus is the demi-god who
slew Medusa and saved Andromeda from the Sea Monster. In
modern parlance, he is the demi-god hero of the "Clash of the
Titans" movies. In astronomy, Perseus is a constellation in the
northern skies west of the "W" (or "M", depending on the season)
- shaped Cassiopeia. Perseus is host to many deep-sky treasures: the Double Cluster, the California Nebula, and the subject of this page, NGC 1491. NGC 1491 (also listed in the Sharpless Catalog as SH2-206) is an emission nebula, which means it is a cloud of ionized hydrogen gas and a stellar nursery. The nebula is primarily illuminated by the bright star near the center of this image. This star is not only the primary source of the ultraviolet radiation that is lighting up the nebula, it is also generating an energetic stellar wind that is eroding away the gas of the nebula. At the brightest region of this image near that star, a subtle "bubble" might be seen near that star. |
| Constellation: Perseus |
| When Visible: December - April |
| Distance: 10,700 light-years |
| Date: December 2013 |
| Location: Rancho Hidalgo, New Mexico |
| Exposure Details:
H-alpha: 35 x 30 Minutes Binned 1x1 (used for Luminance) R: 12 x 10 minutes Binned 1x1 G: 12 x 10 minutes Binned 1x1 B: 12 x 10 minutes Binned 1x1 Total Exposure Time of 23 - 1/2 hours |
| Equipment Used: 12.5" PlaneWave CDK on a Software Bisque Paramount ME mount. SBIG STL-6303 camera with 5-position filter wheel, AO-L Adaptive Optics Unit, Pyxis Rotator and Astrodon LRGB filters |
| Acquisition Software : MaximDL, TheSky6, CCDAutopilot |
| Processing Software: MaximDL, Adobe Photoshop CS5, Carboni Tools, IrFanView |