A classic nebular field with star-forming structure and warm narrowband color throughout the frame.
- What am I looking at?
- The Eagle Nebula contains the Pillars of Creation — towering columns of gas and dust where stars are forming.
- How far away is it?
- About 7,000 light-years away.
- Where is it in the sky?
- In Serpens, near the rich star fields of the summer Milky Way.
- Why does it matter?
- Made famous by Hubble Space Telescope images of star birth in the pillars.
- When is the best time to photograph it?
- Summer when Serpens and the galactic core are well placed.
Capture summary
Nebula in Serpens
July 19 & 21, 2020
Ha, OIII, SII
Summer target / wide composition
- L-Pro 3h 40m 44 x 300s / July 19 & 21, 2020
- Totals 3h 40m July 19 & 21, 2020
When to image this target
Nebula in Serpens; best planned for June through August from New Jersey.
Summer targets often improve later at night as the Milky Way climbs higher.
Assumes a New Jersey backyard horizon and evening imaging.
Emission nebulae are good candidates for narrowband filters; reflection nebulae prefer darker skies.
M16 is listed here in Serpens.
Current frame: Narrowband / Ha, OIII, SII.
Live altitude, moon, and filter guidance
Calculating target altitude and moon context.
Use the full planner to enter a ZIP code, choose a date, and compare the target from your sky.
Based on the current time.
Green marks usable dark-sky altitude.
Next upper transit.
Approximate horizon crossing.
Moon phase and altitude.
Acquisition & processing notes
Filter channels, integration times, and capture dates for this frame. View on AstroBin.
- Optolong L-Pro 2 on night one and Optolong L-eNhance 2 on night two 18 x 300s, 26 x 300s, 3h 40m
Field notes for this target.
Browse all capture notesHow I captured this
| Channel | Frames | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Optolong L-Pro 2 on night one and Optolong L-eNhance 2 on night two | 18 x 300s, 26 x 300s | 3h 40m |
- Equipment used
- From my current rig
- Mount
- iOptron CEM60
- Telescope
- Explore Scientific FCD100 127mm Carbon Fiber Triplet APO
- Camera
- ZWO ASI2600MM Pro
- Filters
- Chroma 36mm Ha, OIII, SII, and LRGB (ZWO EFW 7×36mm)
- Focuser / rotator
- MoonLite NiteCrawler
- Reducer
- Starizona Apex ED 0.65×
- Guiding
- ZWO off-axis guider + ASI290MM Mini
- Control / power
- PrimaLuceLab Eagle 4S, Powerwerx PSU, Bioenno field battery, and MEGAbox
