Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Dorado (Dor)  ·  Contains:  HD37552  ·  NGC 2004  ·  NGC 2011  ·  NGC 2014  ·  NGC 2020  ·  NGC 2021  ·  NGC 2030  ·  NGC 2032  ·  NGC 2035  ·  NGC 2040  ·  NGC 2053  ·  PGC 17536  ·  PGC 3095723
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The Dragon's Head and the Cosmic Reef, Chris Laurel
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The Dragon's Head and the Cosmic Reef

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
The Dragon's Head and the Cosmic Reef, Chris Laurel
Powered byPixInsight

The Dragon's Head and the Cosmic Reef

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Description

The Dragon's Head Nebula and the Cosmic Reef are portions of a complex of emission Nebulae in the Large Magellanic Cloud. There's an amazing variety of structure within a field that's just a degree across.

The Dragon's Head Nebula (NGC 2035) is the brightest concentration of nebulosity in the field. There are are two toroidal structures visible, with similar (to me) structure, but different origins. NGC 2040 is a supernova remnant with filaments glowing reddish from H-alpha emissions. In contrast, NGC 2020 shines with bluish light from oxygen ionized by a Wolf-Rayet star at its center.

Most of the integration for this composition is in Ha and OIII, but I also added in RGB for stars.

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The Dragon's Head and the Cosmic Reef, Chris Laurel