Image 1: The Iris Nebula by Calvin Klatt (c) 2024-12
The Iris Nebula is a reflection nebula approximately 1300 light years away from us, in our Galaxy the Milky Way. Illuminated by a very bright star, this nebula appears in the northern constellation Cepheus.
Most nebulae are red from emission of the Hydrogen Alpha spectral line, but this one is different. The light is predominantly reflected light and is therefore more like a cloud in the sky.
Image 2: The Iris Nebula by Calvin Klatt (c) 2019-08
Image 1 was produced in December 2024 from data collected in September 2024. Image 2 is a previous attempt from a few years ago. There is a dramatic improvement, mainly in how I am processing the data, not so much in the quality of the telescope.
I spent a huge amount of time on this image because I was having trouble with some quirky (buggy) (free) software (FITS Liberator, or as I call it FITS Frustrater). I tried a few times and eventually just gave up. In processing other images I came to understand better what was going on and decided to have another go at it. FITS Liberator desperately needs some bug fixing.
I think this is a very good image of the Iris.
Data was RGB from the ZWO ASI-6200MC Camera. RASA11 on the CEM70 mount. 144 minutes total, 64 second subframes. No narrowband because it is a reflection nebula.
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