Above: 2 x Cropped & reprocessed sections of the full image - Nov. 2022. Click on either image for Higher Resolution.
Above: Rendition completed in Nov. 2022.
Below: Rendiition completed in Jul. 2020.
IC 1396 with Elephant Trunk Nebula
Below: A closer look at the Elephant Trunk Nebula - done in 2020
The Elephant's Trunk Nebula is a concentration of interstellar gas and dust within the much larger ionized gas region IC 1396 located in the constellation Cepheus about 2,400 light years away from Earth. The lower section, is commonly called the Elephant's Trunk Nebula because of its appearance at visible light wavelengths, where there is a dark patch with a bright, sinuous rim. The bright rim is the surface of the dense cloud that is being illuminated and ionized by a very bright, massive star (HD 206267). The entire IC 1396 region is ionized by this massive star, except for dense globules that can protect themselves from the star's harsh ultraviolet rays.
The Elephant's Trunk Nebula is now thought to be a site of star formation, containing several very young (less than 100,000 yr) stars that were discovered in infrared images in 2003. Two older (but still young, a couple of million years, by the standards of stars, which live for billions of years) stars are present in a small, circular cavity in the head of the globule. Winds from these young stars may have emptied the cavity.
The combined action of the light from the massive star ionizing and compressing the rim of the cloud, and the wind from the young stars shifting gas from the center outward lead to very high compression in the Elephant's Trunk Nebula. This pressure has triggered the current generation of protostars.
Imaging telescopes or lenses: Takahashi FSQ130ED
Imaging cameras: FLI ML16200
Mounts: Takahashi EM 400 Temma 2M
Guiding telescopes or lenses: Takahashi FS60CB
Guiding cameras: QHY CCD QHY 5 II
Focal Extender / Reducer: None
Software: PHD 2, Pleiades Astrophoto PixInsight , Astro Pixel Processor (for stacking), Sequence Generator Pro SGP (for capture)
Filters: Astrodon SII, Ha & OIII
Accessories: Robofocus Focuser, ATIK EFW3
Original Resolution: 3200 x 4200
Dates: 22nd Jul - 23rd Jul '20
Frames:
Astrodon SII 20 x 10'
Astrodon Ha 30 x 10'
Astrodon OIII 20 x 10'
Total Time: 11 Hours 40 Minutes
Center (RA, Dec): (324.956, 57.306)
Center (RA, hms): 21h 39m 49.474s
Center (Dec, dms): +57° 18' 21.251"
Size: 1.69 x 2.22 deg
Radius: 1.396 deg
Pixel scale: 1.9 arcsec/pixel
Orientation: Up is 271 degrees E of N
The Elephant's Trunk Nebula is now thought to be a site of star formation, containing several very young (less than 100,000 yr) stars that were discovered in infrared images in 2003. Two older (but still young, a couple of million years, by the standards of stars, which live for billions of years) stars are present in a small, circular cavity in the head of the globule. Winds from these young stars may have emptied the cavity.
The combined action of the light from the massive star ionizing and compressing the rim of the cloud, and the wind from the young stars shifting gas from the center outward lead to very high compression in the Elephant's Trunk Nebula. This pressure has triggered the current generation of protostars.
Imaging telescopes or lenses: Takahashi FSQ130ED
Imaging cameras: FLI ML16200
Mounts: Takahashi EM 400 Temma 2M
Guiding telescopes or lenses: Takahashi FS60CB
Guiding cameras: QHY CCD QHY 5 II
Focal Extender / Reducer: None
Software: PHD 2, Pleiades Astrophoto PixInsight , Astro Pixel Processor (for stacking), Sequence Generator Pro SGP (for capture)
Filters: Astrodon SII, Ha & OIII
Accessories: Robofocus Focuser, ATIK EFW3
Original Resolution: 3200 x 4200
Dates: 22nd Jul - 23rd Jul '20
Frames:
Astrodon SII 20 x 10'
Astrodon Ha 30 x 10'
Astrodon OIII 20 x 10'
Total Time: 11 Hours 40 Minutes
Center (RA, Dec): (324.956, 57.306)
Center (RA, hms): 21h 39m 49.474s
Center (Dec, dms): +57° 18' 21.251"
Size: 1.69 x 2.22 deg
Radius: 1.396 deg
Pixel scale: 1.9 arcsec/pixel
Orientation: Up is 271 degrees E of N
Sky Map
Annotated Image
