Cone Nebula & Christmas Tree Cluster
NGC 2264
The Cone Nebula, also known as NGC 2264, is a fascinating and visually striking region of interstellar gas and dust located in the constellation Monoceros, approximately 2,700 light-years away from Earth. It is a prominent feature within a larger star-forming region known as the Christmas Tree Cluster.

The Cone Nebula gets its name from its distinctive conical shape, which is created by a dark absorption nebula obscuring the light from the background stars. The nebula is primarily composed of hydrogen gas, with traces of other elements and dust particles. The gas and dust of the Cone Nebula are illuminated by nearby stars, causing it to emit a reddish glow.
This remarkable nebula is a site of active star formation. Deep within the dense clouds of gas and dust, new stars are being born. Stellar winds and intense radiation from these young, massive stars have sculpted the surrounding material, creating the unique shape of the Cone Nebula.
This HaRGB version combines 3h 45' of RGB data with 3h 20' H-Alpha data.


Image Details
Date
December 17, 2022 & , January 18, 19, 2023
LOCATion
Hannover (Germany)
Sky Quality
Bortle 5
Telescope
Celestron RASA 8 (203/400 f/2)
Mount
Skywatcher EQ6-R Pro
Main Cameras
ZWO ASI 2600 MC Pro
Gain 100, Offset 18, -10°
TS 2600 MP
Gain 100, Offset 50, -10°
Focuser
Celestron Motorfocus
Filter
Baader H-Alpha Highspeed 3.5nm
Exposure
RGB: 380 × 30″ (3h 10′) & 35 × 60″ (35′)
Ha: 200 × 60″ (3h 20′)
Total: 7h 5‘
Guiding
ZWO ASI 120MM, PHD2
Calibration
Flats, Darks, Darkflats
Software
N.I.N.A., EQMod
Other
Artesky Filter Holder
Processing
Astropixelprocessor, Photoshop, Pixinsight
  
  
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