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Dates & Location

 September 24th - October 14th 2009 from the SMAP site at Weed, New Mexico. Elevation 7269 ft. Lat 32.8°N Long 195.5W
  

Catalogue identification

NGC 7023.
The Iris Nebula.
Equipment Used

AstroTech RC400 at 3304 mm focal length.
Paramount ME German Equatorial Mount.
Camera SBIG ST-11000M. SBIG FW-8L Filter Wheel.
TheSky V6 Telescope control
CCDSoft V5.1 Camera control.

  

Where it is in space

In the constellation of Cepheus.
Right Ascension: 21h 0.5 (hrs : mins)
Declination: +68° 10 (deg : mins).
North is up, East is Left in this image.
Acquisition Remote session using RADMIN PC control from Ravenshead, UK.
Exposures:- Luminance 24 x 5min and 12 x 10 min for luminance filter. 9, 9, 12 x 10 min R, G, B filters, Total exposure time used in processing 9 hrs with the camera CCD at -20°C.		   What it is   

Thisis a reflection nebula approx 6 light years across and 1,400 light years away from Earth. Within the nebula, dusty nebular material in the form of dust and gas surrounds a massive, hot, young star in its formative years. Central filaments of cosmic dust glow with a reddish photoluminescence as some dust grains effectively convert the star's invisible ultraviolet radiation to visible red light. The nebula's dominant color, blue, is the result of dust grains reflecting star light. Infrared observations indicate that this nebula may contain complex carbon molecules known as PAHs.

Processing Methods

Images acquired with CCDSoft V5.1  
  Data reduction and Luminence De-convolution with CCDStack.  
  Master RGB image and Master Lum Image finished and combined with Photoshop CS2.