Soaring Birds [Explored]

This image shows the rising Seagull Nebula soaring high above Mt. Druesberg in central Switzerland.

 

The Seagull Nebula is an emission nebula on the borders of the constellations of Monoceros and Canis Major. Its location 10 degrees below the celestial equator puts it rather low for northern hemisphere observers, which may be the reason why it is not as famous as other nebula that rise higher during the night.

 

For deepscapes however, a deep space object needs to hug the horizon, which makes the Seagull Nebula a perfect target.

 

Despite careful planning, the resulting image contains a big surprise: The Seagull Nebula is not that splendid bird with a bright body and wispy wings and tail you can see in this deep image. I didn't even know that these structures exist. What is known as the Seagull Nebula is just the bright body part that remotely resembles a soaring bird on its own - it is the bird in a much bigger, more detailed bird! How awesome!

 

If you want to know how such 'deepscapes' are captured, make sure you do not miss my virtual presentation at the 2021 NightScaper Conference from May 10-12, 2021. Conference tickets are still available under www.nightscaper.com

 

Make sure you enter the discount coupon code

 

ROHNER200

 

at checkout for a $200 discount on the regular ticket price.

 

EXIF

Canon EOS 6D, astro-modified

ZWO ASI 1600MM Pro

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 @ f/4

Baader Ultra Narrowband H-alpha and Olll filters

Modified Skywatcher AZ-GTI mount, controlled with ASIair

Sky:

Canon EOS 6D @ 200mm:

26 x 60s @ ISO1600 for RGB

ZWO ASI 1600MM Pro @ 96mm (to match the 200mm full frame FOV)

20 x 300s H-alpha @ Gain 200

10 x 300s Olll @ Gain 200

Foreground:

8 x 90s @ ISO1600

Done