Waid Observatory

Object: The Rosette Nebula - NGC 2237-9
Date: Jan. 29-30, 2017   -   Location: Fort Davis, TX
Telescope:  Stellarvue SV102ED -  Camera: ST-8300M
Exposure: Lum = 120 min Ha & OIII = 180 min. each - Image: L+Ha/Ha/OIII/OIII
Click on the image below to view at higher resolution.

 

NGC 2237

 

The Rosette Nebula 1

The Rosette Nebula, designated as NGC 2237-9, is a very large celestial cloud of dust and gas that extends over an area of about 1 degree of the sky.  This impressive object lies in the constellation Monoceros at a distance of approximately 5,000 light years from the Earth. In the center of the "Rose" lies the open cluster NGC 2244.  These young massive stars are the illuminating source exciting the gasses in the nebula to glow in much the same way as a neon light.

The above image was assembled from exposures made through Hydrogen Alpha (deep red) and Oxygen III (blue-green or teal) filters.  These exposures were combined with Hydrogen Alpha mapped to the red channel and Oxygen III mapped to the green and blue channels.  This mapping produces a "near true color" image.

1http://messier.seds.org/xtra/ngc/n2244.html

 
Copyright Donald P. Waid