CITSO Blog: Conjuring the Wizard!

CITSO Blog: Conjuring the Wizard

NGC 7380 (Wizard nebula) in Cepheus

Imaged August 25 to September 2 2012

Click the image for the high resolution version!

NGC 7380 in Cepheus in Narrowband Filters

Imaged between August 25 & September 2 2012, 15+ hours total.

Ha=340 minutes (1X1), SII=320m (2X2), OIII=260m (2x2), Subs=20m.

Telescope=PlaneWave CDK17, Camera=Apogee U16M, Mount=Paramount ME.
Astrodon filters and MOAG, Starlight Xpress Lodestar guide camera.

Frames acquired with ACP controlling TheSky X, MaxIm DL, and Focusmax.
Processed with PixInsight and CCDInspector.

This is my very first all-narrowband image! It is the result of 7 nights of imaging between August 25 and September 2 2012, right through full Moon!

After first trying to work with the Hubble palette, I adopted another common palette that I think produces a more natural result in this case, taking SII as red, Ha as orange, and OIII as light blue. More precisely, I mapped the colors using the linear combinations Red=0.8*SII+0.2*Ha, Green=0.2*Ha+0.8*OIII, and Blue=OIII, while desaturating the stars as much as possible.

I learned a heck of a lot from working on this image, and will try to write more on this experience a little later ... heck, I'm in Santorini as I write this (July 16 2013), and it's nearly dawn, time to get some sleep! My family and I are going on a boat tour of the caldera later today, and that will include a swim over hot springs, and a ship-deck view of the sunset!

DownX2 for Asterik