Mike's Astro Photos
Nov.30 2012

Elephant Trunk Nebula in Hubble Palette

by , under Nebula

Here’s my first ever narrow band image using the Hubble pallet. This is only about a 3 hour exposure. I wanted to collect more data, but a multi-day storm has come through CA and there won’t be a clear night for about a week, so I figured I would get this done as best I could and consider it version 1. Here is a great tutorial on how to compose Hubble Palette images using data collected with Ha, Oii & Siii narrow band filters. I’ve gotten most of the bugs out of my system, but my tracking is still not 100%. I’m currently dealing with a 2 arc second guide error peak to peak, and I’d like to get that down to 1 arc second. Other than that, things are working pretty good.

Elephant Trunk Nebula in Hubble Palette – November 27 & 28, 2012

Approximately 3,000 light years away, the Elephant Trunk Nebula is part of the emission nebula IC 1396. It was given this name as the gas cloud resembles the head and trunk of an elephant. While the entire nebula covers 5 degrees of the night sky, the trunk part of it is estimated to be 20 light years long.

Photo Details
NGC 891
Ha, Oiii, Sii @ 60x60x60 Minutes Each
Total exposure: 3 hours
Camera: Apogee U16M
Guider: SBIG 402 with MMOAG Off Axis Guider
Telescope: RCOS 14.5
Mount: Paramount ME
Location: Auberry, CA
Date: 11/27/2012, 11/28/2012
Software: The SkyX, MaximDL, FocusMax, CCDAutoPilot, CCDStack, Photoshop


1 Comment for this entry

  • Susan Stewart

    OMG what incredible photos! I saw my first ever large, slow motion type “falling star” while out walking my dog about 8:30ish on 10/29 in Washington state. While I had seen meteor showers before, they appeared so far away I was not much impressed. After I saw this fireball on 10/29, which appeared so close and so huge I was just mesmerized. What an awesome experience that was. I will be forever hoping I see one again in my lifetime. That experience has opened up whole new world view for me. I work in emergency services so I don’t get to excited about things usually. Thank you for your interest and the time you devote to this and for sharing your incredible photos, videos and awesome web site. Susan

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