More Classically processed image that emphasizes the Horsehead
| Rob Hawley's Pages | Almaden Observatory Main Page |
October 2011- January 2012
Last year I published an image of the Horsehead using my older Orion ED-100 scope. Those images were so bad that it encouraged me to upgrade to the FSQ106.
This is a complete reshoot with my current equipment.The image of the Horsehead proper (NE Mosaic frame) was captured from early October to mid November 2011. After some test shots with Nitrogen and Oxygen I decided to only capture Hydrogen Alpha
After completing collection of the basic HorseHead I decided to
expand the project to a mosaic. Data collection for the other
three panels of the mosaic was completed in January 2012.
The Sharpless region extends beyond the area that is classically
considered to be the Horsehead and Flame. Much of the Eastern
portion is very dim. Stretching that portion to highlight its
structure cuts the contrast for the main portion of the nebula.
Consequently I have processed the image in two different ways. In
the top image I have made the eastern portions of the Sharpless more
visible. In the bottom image I processed the image more
classically which emphasizes IC 434.
|
|
More Classically processed image that emphasizes the Horsehead |
The mosaic consists of 4 segments
| Segment |
#
Exposures |
|---|---|
| 1 NE (NGC 2024 and IC 434) |
63 x 900 sec |
| 2 NW |
66x900 |
| 3 SE |
47x900 |
| 4 SW |
72x900 |
The Horsehead is a dark
nebula that obscures the Hydrogen clouds of IC 434. It is part of
a complex area of nebulosity that runs throughout Orion. The
Flame Nebula (NGC 2024) is the top part of IC 434. The nebula
extends beyond the view of the initial photo which prompted my plans
for a mosaic. In the map below the initial image is shown in
green. For more information see the Wikipedia article.
 |
 The green marks the approximate location of the first image |
