The Nameless Nebula (
NGC 7822/Sh2-171/Ced 214). This past week I was treated to a rare perfect night, which I devoted to this fascinating, nameless, and somewhat off-the-beaten-path object. (I once saw it referred to as the
Teddy Bear Nebula, but that moniker hasn't quite captured the public imagination.) Everything came off without a hitch, I was pleased to gather 7 hours of easy-to-process dual narrowband data with the Optolong L-eNhance filter.
One disadvantage of imaging with this OSC/dual-narrowband set up is that the red Ha often dominates the blue/green Oiii, yielding an unnatural orange-y result. After experimenting with the technique in
my previous project, I split this image into channels and worked in curves to boost the blues and greens. While the image remains dominated by red (it is an emission nebula after all) I think I have achieved a somewhat more natural-looking balance among the hues than I started with, while also accentuating certain structures within the nebula. A good night's work--though I had to wait for another clear night to capture the some broadband stars as a finishing touch.
Finally, I'd like to credit
Jeff Ball for his
excellent video on Sven Cederblad; Cederblad's Catalog of Bright Diffuse Galactic Nebulae; and Cederblad 214, the catalog's most notable entry.
(Captured: C6, AVX, Hyperstar, ASI183MC Pro, L-Pro filter, L-Enhance filter. Processed: AstroPixelProcessor, PixInsight, StarXterminator, NoiseXterminator)
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