Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Perseus (Per)  ·  Contains:  California Nebula  ·  NGC 1499
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INSIDE THE CALIFORNIA NEBULA - HUBBLE PALETTE COMPOSITION, Emanuele La Barbera
INSIDE THE CALIFORNIA NEBULA - HUBBLE PALETTE COMPOSITION
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INSIDE THE CALIFORNIA NEBULA - HUBBLE PALETTE COMPOSITION

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
INSIDE THE CALIFORNIA NEBULA - HUBBLE PALETTE COMPOSITION, Emanuele La Barbera
INSIDE THE CALIFORNIA NEBULA - HUBBLE PALETTE COMPOSITION
Powered byPixInsight

INSIDE THE CALIFORNIA NEBULA - HUBBLE PALETTE COMPOSITION

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Description

NGC 1499 / Sh2-220, known as the California Nebula, is a visible emission nebula in the constellation Perseus.
1000 light years away from Earth, it was discovered by E.E. Barnard in 1884 and was baptized this way because its shape, portrayed in long exposure photographs, recalls the US state of California. A curious fact is that the nebula transits to the zenith in central California, this is because the latitude corresponds to the declination of the object.
Although it has an apparent size of 2.5 ° in the sky, due to its low surface brilliance, it can only be observed with long exposure photos or through large diameter optics under exceptionally dark skies.
Generally this region is captured using "classical methodologies" (LRGB, RGB or LHRGB) and appears red, with natural colors. However, it is difficult to find shots in which it is also possible to appreciate the detachment of only the hydrogen and oxygen gases.
In fact, aware of the fact that this region is rich in ionized sulfur, we preferred to focus more on the so-called Hubble Palette to better highlight the gas distribution. Although they are false colors, the oxygen gas is fortunately well detached (blue gas) but also the sulfur gas is well separated (red and orange) which gave much more three-dimensionality to the photo. The yellow and green component is typical of hydrogen.
Probably a version with natural colors will also be released in the future to show with the version in the Hubble Palette.
Image obtained with Michele Russo

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