IC-63_IC-59_2022-2024
The sky was clear last night so I pointed the 'scope at a ghost -- that's what Halloween is all about. This is the Ghost of Cassiopeia through an Ha filter. I collected about 8 hr of data last night and added it to Ha data collected in 2022. I had 17 hr of data in total and the image was made from the best 12 hr, as rated by DeepSkyStacker.
IC 59 is the upper-left part of the dust cloud, IC 63 is the "ghost" in the middle, and the lower lump/bump doesn't have a name, so I think we should call it IC Nothing. Below are a few fun facts about this little grouping.
IC 59 and IC 63 are a combination of faint, arc-shaped emission and reflection nebulae, located about 600 light-years away in the constellation Cassiopeia. Together they are approximately 10 light-years across. IC 63 is known as the Ghost of Cassiopeia.
The brightest star in the image is Gamma Cassiopeiae, which is 19 times more massive, 65,000 times brighter, and spins 200 times faster than our sun. The radiation from Gamma Cass is so intense that it affects the IC 63/59 gas/dust cloud several light years away.
Rio Rancho NM Bortle 5 zone, Months and months
William Optics Redcat 51
ZWO 183mm pro
ZWO 30mm f/4 mini guide scope and ZWO 120 Mini
Optolong Ha filter
ZWO ASI Air Pro
Sky-Watcher HEQ5
Dithering Darks Flats GraXpert
Gain 111 at -10C
Processed in DSS and PS
IC-63_IC-59_2022-2024
The sky was clear last night so I pointed the 'scope at a ghost -- that's what Halloween is all about. This is the Ghost of Cassiopeia through an Ha filter. I collected about 8 hr of data last night and added it to Ha data collected in 2022. I had 17 hr of data in total and the image was made from the best 12 hr, as rated by DeepSkyStacker.
IC 59 is the upper-left part of the dust cloud, IC 63 is the "ghost" in the middle, and the lower lump/bump doesn't have a name, so I think we should call it IC Nothing. Below are a few fun facts about this little grouping.
IC 59 and IC 63 are a combination of faint, arc-shaped emission and reflection nebulae, located about 600 light-years away in the constellation Cassiopeia. Together they are approximately 10 light-years across. IC 63 is known as the Ghost of Cassiopeia.
The brightest star in the image is Gamma Cassiopeiae, which is 19 times more massive, 65,000 times brighter, and spins 200 times faster than our sun. The radiation from Gamma Cass is so intense that it affects the IC 63/59 gas/dust cloud several light years away.
Rio Rancho NM Bortle 5 zone, Months and months
William Optics Redcat 51
ZWO 183mm pro
ZWO 30mm f/4 mini guide scope and ZWO 120 Mini
Optolong Ha filter
ZWO ASI Air Pro
Sky-Watcher HEQ5
Dithering Darks Flats GraXpert
Gain 111 at -10C
Processed in DSS and PS