Cone Nebula




About this image.

Clouds of glowing hydrogen gas fill this region in the faint but fanciful constellation Monoceros, the Unicorn. A star forming region cataloged as NGC 2264, the complex jumble of cosmic gas and dust is about 2,700 light-years distant and mixes reddish emission nebulae excited by energetic light from newborn stars with dark interstellar dust clouds. Where the otherwise obscuring dust clouds lie close to the hot, young stars they also reflect starlight, forming blue reflection nebulae. The wide mosaic spans about 3/4 degree or nearly 1.5 full moons, covering 40 light-years at the distance of NGC 2264. Its cast of cosmic characters includes the the Fox Fur Nebula, whose convoluted pelt lies at the upper right, bright variable star S Mon immersed in the blue-tinted haze just below and to the left of the Fox Fur, and the Cone Nebula at bottom right. Of course, the stars of NGC 2264 are also known as the Christmas Tree star cluster. The triangular tree shape traced by the stars appears upside down here, with its apex right above the tip of the Cone Nebula.

(Text taken from Astronomy Picture of the Day
 

                                      5344 x 2530        

Equipment

Telescope:                 12.5" Ritchey Chretien by RC Optical Systems
Mount:                      Paramount ME by Software Bisque
Instrument:               STL11000M CCD Camera by SBIG

Exposure:                  2 Panel Mosaic, HARGB Image 15:6:5:6 hours (total 32 hours)
Capture Software:       CCDSOFT V5, CCDAutopilot
Processing:                Maxim DL/CCD, Photoshop CS, CCDSharp 

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