M42 The Great Orion Nebula

    M42 (NGC 1976), Magnitude Magnitude 4.0 Emission Nebula, Size 85.0'x60.0', Constellation: Orion.

Image Details:

• Scope: Celestron Ultima 8 OTA.
• Mount: Celestron AS-GT.
• Camera: Adirondack Video Astronomy Stellacam II.
• Configuration: f/3.3 focal reducer, both spacers.
• Effective Focal Length: 609mm, f/3.
• Guiding: None.
• Location: Mobile Astronomical Society Pine Lake Observatory Site.
• Date: 25 February 2006.
• Post Processing: Registax 3, Adobe Photoshop.
• Procedures: Video recorded to DVD, converted to .avi (with FlaskMPEG) stacked with Registax 3, and processed with Photoshop.

Frankly, this huge cloud looks great no matter how bad the light pollution, but the Stellacam really brought out the nebulosity. 

M42 is located about 1600 light years from our little world, and is but one small fragment of the huge complex of emission, reflection, and dark nebulae that extends through most of Orion. 

The light pollution has gotten pretty bad at Pine Lake over the years, but the Stellacam II definitely brought home the goods. It's now my favorite method of observing at this site. Looking at the monitor, my daughter, Elizabeth, christened M42, "The Great Bird of the Galaxy."

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