Nothing But Love
Cassiopeia is home to two of the most iconic nebulae in the whole night sky, the Heart and Soul Nebulae. The naming of the Heart Nebula is obvious given it's uncanny shaping, especially in this palette where it appears to be outlined in blood red to further confirm this can only be a heart. The Soul Nebula is less obvious but is said to resemble a foetus in the womb, and so is affectionately named the soul.
It's a target that speaks to many people, whether they are interested in space or not, the shapes and associations speak to us deep in our psyche, they touch us, we want to know more, how can the shape be so recognisable?
Both nebula have incredible regions of Ha and O3 and is one of the best targets in the night sky for capturing a solid O3 signal, The O3 is also at it's strongest in the centre of both nebulae so you really get to bring out the colour contrast between the blue O3 and the reds of the Ha. They really are incredibly beautiful nebulae.
Another interesting factor is the absence of any majorly bright stars, there is nothing else in the scene to distract away from a true master piece of natural beauty. I did want to capture the stars in RGB though to add the beautiful deep blues and oranges that exist within the stars running through the Milky Way band that this target sits.
What a signal Cygnus is, a constellation that has an incredible amount going on and this 2 pane panorama highlights a particularly good spot.
The Technical Details
This 2 pane panorama is comprised of 3 individual data sets, Ha, O3 and RGB data all obtained from my garden at Bortle 7.
72x300s Ha, 20x180s O3, 100x120s RGB stacked in APP, processed in APP, StarNet and Photoshop.
Kit
ZWO ASI1600MC-Pro, Gain 200 @ -10C
William Optics RedCat 51 v1.5 f/4.9
Deep Sky Dad AF3
Baader UNB Ha 3.5nm, O3 4nm, Altair Astro UV/IR 2"
Altair UV/IR 2"
iOptron CEM25P
Pegasus Pocket Powerbox
ZWO guide scope and ASI120MM-S guide cam
Images captured by NINA and guided by PHD2