The Herschel 400 Astronomical League Project is underway
It’s not too late to join. We are about 30 objects into the Herschel 400. Hope to get another session in soon. Please subscribe to the YouTube channel so you get notifications on LIVE STREAMS.
Angels in Monoceros: The Monoceros M2 Complex
The Monoceros R2 molecular complex (often shortened to Mon R2) is a massive giant molecular cloud and one of the nearest active star-forming regions to Earth. It's a dynamic stellar nursery embedded in dense gas and dust, where new stars—particularly massive ones—are actively being born.
Key Facts
Location: Southwestern part of the constellation Monoceros (the Unicorn), near the border with Orion. It's part of the larger Orion-Monoceros cloud complex.
Distance: Approximately 2,400–2,700 light-years (around 830 parsecs).
Size and Structure: The main dense core is relatively compact (a few light-years across), but the overall molecular cloud and associated nebulae span a wide area—reflection nebulae alone stretch up to about 2° in the sky. It's situated well below the galactic plane, which makes it stand out in certain observations.
Age and Activity: Star formation here began roughly 6–10 million years ago. It hosts an OB association (young, hot, massive B- and A-type stars) that illuminates surrounding dust, creating prominent reflection nebulae with bluish hues. There's also significant emission from ionized gas (red glows) and dark nebulae that appear as shadowy silhouettes blocking background light.
Notable Features:
A central hub of massive star formation with embedded clusters, molecular outflows, and HII regions.
Infrared observations (like those from VISTA or 2MASS) penetrate the dust to reveal hidden young stars and protoplanetary disks.
It's a key site for studying early stellar evolution, variability in young stellar objects (YSOs), and the interplay between massive stars and their natal clouds.
The most famous and photogenic part of Mon R2 is the region around NGC 2170 (the Angel Nebula), a striking reflection nebula with wing-like dust structures, glowing blue from scattered starlight, mixed with red emission and dark lanes. Wider views of the complex reveal a richer tapestry of colorful gas, dust filaments, and star clusters.
Credit: GROK 2/28/26
Click on image for larger view.
New Astro Camera: OM-3
Join me for a LIVE conversation about this new astro camera coming to the market. Is this the best option for you? How does it compare to other options? https://www.earthandskyphoto.com Correction: when discussing Bulb mode with Canon, I incorrectly said it had a limit of 30”. I meant to say manual exposure has a max of 30”. In bulb, you need to use a remote control or app for exposure time control. The problem is you can’t set exposure time for stills in the camera menu. I was made aware that Olympus no longer owns the OM system. It is owned by Japanese industrial Partners, a private equity firm. For content on the OM-3 for astrophotography, please see Ben Chapell’s Narrow Band channel. https://youtube.com/@TheNarrowbandChannel?si=GcWY-BM9skG9LPhY
Make Every Trip a Photography Trip
Make every trip more fun by adding photography to the agenda.
Comet PanSTARRS (C/2017 T2) in Perseus
On February 2, 2020, 9th magnitude Comet PanSTARRS (C2017 T2) flew through the constellation Perseus near the Double Cluster (NGC 869) and the Heart and Soul Nebulae (IC 1805 and IC 1848). This photo captures the comet at the bottom center of the frame as a green-blue fuzzy coma with a very short tail. The comet at this time was approximately 244 million km away. The deep sky objects in the field are around 8,000 light YEARS away. Hard to put distances into perspective at the cosmic scale. This comet will be with us for a few months and may be seen very nicely in a 50mm pair of binoculars. For more information, please see the Sky and Telescope article here. Also, for an up to date location of the comet, see you favorite astronomy app. I use Sky Safari on the iPhone. Screen shot from the app is below.
Comet C/2017 T2 PanSTARRS. Click on image for larger presentation.
80 one minute exposures were combined and centered on the comet. Camera was the Canon Ra at ISO 1600 on the William Optics Redcat 51.
Comet on the night of February 2, 2020.
Optimizing the Ultimate Portable Astrophotography Setup
Let’s optimize the iOptron Skyguider Pro to complete the Ultimate Portable System.
Can the Canon Ra be used for video production?
Join us on our latest video as we evaluate the Canon Ra for video production.
Can you use the Canon Ra for daytime landscape photography?
Join me in this YouTube video as we explore the utility of the Canon Ra.
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