NGC 2264 Cone Nebula V3
Bows and flows of angel hair, and feathered canyons everywhere. (Neil Diamond) The Cone Nebula is located 2,700 light years away in the constellation Monoceros. The cone's shape comes from a dark absorption nebula consisting of cold molecular hydrogen and dust in front of a faint emission nebula containing hydrogen ionized by S Monocerotis, the brightest star of NGC 2264. The faint nebula is approximately seven light-years long.
The horizontal Christmas Tree cluster lies left of the cone; the bright star immediately left of the cone is the tree topper and the very bright star near the center of the image is the center of the tree trunk. The Fox Fur Nebula is at the top center.
The Christmas Tree star formation consists of young stars obscured by heavy layers of dust clouds. These dust clouds, along with hydrogen and helium are producing luminous new stars. The combination of dense clouds and an array of colors creates a color map filled with varying wavelengths. The red regions are ionized hydrogen, while the bluish clouds are ionized oxygen.
Scope: Skywatcher MN190; Camera QSI 683; Mount MYT
This is a false color HOO image (though approximately correct) composed of Ha 9 hours, Oiii 9 hours
To reprocess this image I used a relatively new technique called dynamic color combination, found at: thecoldestnights.com/2020/06/pixinsight-dynamic-narrowban...
Reprocessed December 2023
In V4 I tried to improve the stars, the overall color balance, and to bring up the brightness in the dimmer areas.
NGC 2264 Cone Nebula V3
Bows and flows of angel hair, and feathered canyons everywhere. (Neil Diamond) The Cone Nebula is located 2,700 light years away in the constellation Monoceros. The cone's shape comes from a dark absorption nebula consisting of cold molecular hydrogen and dust in front of a faint emission nebula containing hydrogen ionized by S Monocerotis, the brightest star of NGC 2264. The faint nebula is approximately seven light-years long.
The horizontal Christmas Tree cluster lies left of the cone; the bright star immediately left of the cone is the tree topper and the very bright star near the center of the image is the center of the tree trunk. The Fox Fur Nebula is at the top center.
The Christmas Tree star formation consists of young stars obscured by heavy layers of dust clouds. These dust clouds, along with hydrogen and helium are producing luminous new stars. The combination of dense clouds and an array of colors creates a color map filled with varying wavelengths. The red regions are ionized hydrogen, while the bluish clouds are ionized oxygen.
Scope: Skywatcher MN190; Camera QSI 683; Mount MYT
This is a false color HOO image (though approximately correct) composed of Ha 9 hours, Oiii 9 hours
To reprocess this image I used a relatively new technique called dynamic color combination, found at: thecoldestnights.com/2020/06/pixinsight-dynamic-narrowban...
Reprocessed December 2023
In V4 I tried to improve the stars, the overall color balance, and to bring up the brightness in the dimmer areas.