An emission nebula that contains Bok globules, which are dark areas of gas and dust where stars form. The Pacman Nebula’s official name is NGC 281.
Version 2, reprocessed December 2022
From the Reprocessing Bonanza 2022. This version uses exactly the same data as version 1, but with better processing tools and skills.
Version 1, February 2022
This was an early image attempt with my new kit. I quite like the colour shades I brought out, but may return to reprocess some time. It could do with a longer integration time to help combat the noise too. Still, it’s an achievable target with an OSC camera from a city assuming you have a dual-band filter.
* January – February 2021
* Bristol, UK (Bortle 8)
* Telescope: Askar FRA400 f/5.6 Quintuplet APO Astrograph
* Camera: ZWO ASI 2600MC-PRO
* Filter: Optolong L-eXtreme
* Mount: Orion Sirius EQ-G
* Guide: William Optics 32mm; ZWO ASI 120MM Mini
* Control: ASIAIR PRO
* Software: PixInsight and Lightroom
* 90 x 300 seconds
Total integration time: 7 hours 30 minutes
By Lee Pullen
Example source data
Nothing will motivate me to create more content quite like money!