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Have you ever wondered how much data you would need to create a reasonable astrophoto? I tried to image the Flaming Star Nebula – IC 405, in thirty minutes, but ended up with 2,3 hours to make it how I wanted it to be.
I had not previously pursued this nebula, in my astrophotography quest. IC 405 is an amazing nebula, with vivid red colours that look like flames from a bonfire. On top of the amazing red colours, there is a bluish-white cloud of gas.
IC 405 – The Flaming Star Nebula
is located within the constellation of Auriga, which is high in the winter night skies here in Denmark. The amazing colours of the gas in the cloud become very vivid when you do not use filters for the observations. I would not have been able to pull the bluish-white colour if I had used a narrowband filter set.
If you like this photo you can find more nebula photos in my portfolio
Capturing IC 405
In my first attempt, I collected a total of 10 x 180 seconds of data, however with this little data, my image was prone to artefacts from satellite trails. For this reason, I decided to collect more data. I managed to get 46 x 180-second exposures before the weather went really bad.
You can find more images of this nebula at astrobin
Facts on IC 405
Right Ascension: 05 16 05
Declination: +34 27 49
Distance: 1500 light-years
Apparent visual magnitude: 6.00
Apparent visual dimension: 0.62×0.17°
Constellation: Auriga
Nebula radius: 2.5 light-years
Names: Flaming Star Nebula, IC 405, C 31, SH2-229