20210924 - Sh2-114 CYG The Flying Dragon 🐉 - chasing ghosts 👻 and phantoms from the cave …
What’s in the picture(s)
Sh2-114 CYG The Flying Dragon -
http://www.sharplesscatalog.com/sharpless/SH2-114.aspxQuote “The Flying Dragon" is a diffuse nebula in Cygnus. Winds from hot, massive stars interacting with the magnetic fields in the interstellar medium. This object is the better one when compared with Sh2-113 which is right next door. This nebula responds very well to the Ha-filter and picks up color using RGB filters better than SH2-113, but is still weak. Very little is known about it.”
What was the experience
In the run-up to Halloween 🎃, what else is flying around up there in the full moon ? … right! … a dragon 🐉
Being very faint and small, mainly Ha, I wanted to image this one with the TS140, using Ha for the nebula, and RGB to catch out the stars. I lost some rgb-data because of the clouds, but just enough was left …
My learning focus was on the processing, combining the RGB, blending in the Ha, separating out the stars, doing separate processing on the starless image, to eventually re-combine the slightly processed stars in the end. A tedious workflow, with various avenues to try out, and prone to mistakes along the way (I know I made some 🙄, but I’ve learned from it 😉).
Not 100% picture-perfect (I know where to look) … but the dragon is flying high among the stars 🤩
How it was done
Scope: TS-140 APO (FL 910mm / with x1.0 flattener)
Mount: CEM70G
Camera: ASI2600MM Pro
Guiding: @zwoasi OAG, ASI174MM, ASIAIR Pro - avg 0.35”
Filter: ZWO EFW - RGB/SHO Baader
Resolution: 0,85”/pixel, FoV 107’
Moon: 91%(-), Bortle 5/6 SQM 19.60
Photons: Gain 100 -10c 600s Ha20x 300s R3x G5x B4x
Processing: PixInsight (Mac)
Astrobin:
What have I learned from this
I am improving on my post-processing skills, by trying to see what I can make out of these faint objects. Step-by-step I am learning the possibilities of PixInsight and the various ways that data can be tuned into an image that is so much more compared to just the integration of the subs. I’ve discovered other possibilities as well, maybe I’ll try them in a second pass. I think it’s about time I bought myself a book to really understand PixInsight 😉
Happy with what I’ve learned …. 🤩
Clear Skies everybody! 🤩✨🔭
Follow me @astrowaut
Astrobin:
https://www.astrobin.com/users/WCA65/
Comments