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07022025-Seagull Nebula IC 2177

️✨ The Seagull Nebula – A Cosmic Bird Soaring Through the Stars 🌌💫

 

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Spread across the vast sky, the Seagull Nebula (IC 2177) is a breathtaking emission nebula that stretches its ethereal wings over the border between the constellations Monoceros and Canis Major. This interstellar cloud of ionized hydrogen (HII region) glows as newborn stars illuminate the surrounding gas and dust.

 

📍 Constellation: Monoceros / Canis Major

✨ Distance from Earth: ~3,800 light-years

📏 Size: ~240 light-years across

🔭 Apparent Magnitude: +7

📡 Coordinates (J2000):

 

Right Ascension: 07h 04m 00s

Declination: -10° 27′ 00″

💡 Interesting Facts:

 

The "head" of the Seagull Nebula is NGC 2327, a compact, bright nebula with a massive embedded star.

The extended "wings" are vast regions of glowing hydrogen gas, shaped by stellar winds and radiation.

This nebula is a stellar nursery, where new stars are forming from collapsing clouds of gas and dust.

Despite its faint appearance to the naked eye, long-exposure astrophotography reveals its incredible colors and intricate structures.

A celestial bird soaring through the cosmos, a testament to the beauty and complexity of the universe! 🌌✨ What do you see in this nebula?

 

Lights: 30x600 (HSO)

Date: 13/12/2021

Telescope: Takahashi FSQ-106ED

Camera: FLI PL16803

Filters: Astrodon

Processed: Pixinsight

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Uploaded on February 7, 2025
Taken on December 13, 2021