The site gets its pulse here: sculpted red emission, dark dust, and the compact Melotte 15 star cluster in the core.
- What am I looking at?
- The Heart Nebula is a large star-forming region whose glowing loops resemble a heart.
- How far away is it?
- About 7,500 light-years away.
- Where is it in the sky?
- In Cassiopeia, near the W-shaped constellation.
- Why does it matter?
- A rich narrowband object with bright H-alpha structure and embedded young star clusters.
- When is the best time to photograph it?
- Autumn nights when Cassiopeia is nearly overhead.
Capture summary
Nebula in Cassiopeia
October 8, 2020
Ha, OIII, SII
Autumn target / wide composition
- L-eNhance 2h 45m 33 x 300s / October 8, 2020
- Totals 2h 45m October 8, 2020
When to image this target
Nebula in Cassiopeia; best planned for September through November from New Jersey.
Autumn is a strong window for Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda, and late Cygnus fields.
Assumes a New Jersey backyard horizon and evening imaging.
Emission nebulae are good candidates for narrowband filters; reflection nebulae prefer darker skies.
IC 1805 is listed here in Cassiopeia.
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-eNhance 2 33 x 300s, 2h 45m
Field notes for this target.
Browse all capture notesHow I captured this
| Channel | Frames | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Optolong L-eNhance 2 | 33 x 300s | 2h 45m |
- 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
