Last night we had windy, clear and cold night felt like a winter night, but I couldn't pass up a night of imaging, IC1848 was my second target of the night.  I used the Optolong L-eNhance filter and am wondering if the L-Ultimate might have been a better choice for this target.  I am not pleased with the results and might try this image again tonight, for we are forecasted clear skies once again.

Westerhout 5 (Sharpless 2-199, LBN 667, Soul Nebula) IC 1848 - Soul Nebula IC 1848 is a cluster associated with the Soul Nebula, a large area of nebulosity in Cassiopeia also known as LBN 667 and Sharpless 2-199. The nebula is commonly called by the cluster's designation, IC 1848. This complex is the eastern neighbor of IC 1805 (the Heart Nebula), and the two are often mentioned together as the "Heart and Soul".

Several other small open clusters are embedded in the nebula, including Cr 34, Cr 632, and if course IC 1848. Nebulosity can be glimpsed around most of the brighter stars in IC 1848. The cluster is moderately conspicuous, a rich but not compressed swarm of 11th magnitude and fainter stars. At least two dozen stars may be counted in a 12' area. Outside the main concentration are another 50 stars in a 30' area. Both the 7th and 8th magnitude stars in the cluster core are surrounded by groups of fainter stars contained within pentagons of 11th magnitude stars. Within a 60' diameter, the cluster's total magnitude is 6.5 - on par with the Messier open clusters.The distances to the Heart and Soul nebulae are well determined, mainly because they have star clusters at their centers. These nebula are located in the Perseus Arm of the Galaxy, 7500 and 6500 light years away, respectively. This part of the Perseus Arm contains many star-forming regions.W5, a radio source within the Heart nebula, is a massive star-forming regions spanning an area of sky equivalent to four full moons. W5 contains large cavities that were carved out by radiation and winds from the region's most massive stars. The carving out of these cavities pushes the gas together, causing it to ignite into successive generations of new stars.