Michael A. Stecker
mastecker@gmail.com



 
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IC 1396 with "Elephant Trunk" on 8-19-2023
 This large emission nebula is over 100 light-years across and 2,400 light-years from Earth.  At the upper right is IC 1396A known as the Elephant Trunk Nebula. The very bright star at the upper left is Mu Cephei "Hershael's Garnet Star" -- a
red supergiant star 100,000 time brighter than our Sun.
 file: IC1396-WO73JRFset3-RGB3A8192023-2a.jpg

Photographic Data
telescope:
William Optics ZenithStar 73 mm f/5.9 doublet refractor (focal length= 430 mm) with William Optics
Adjustable Flat73 for Z73 (P-FLAT73A)
FL= 430 mm
 
mount and guiding
Astro-Physics 1200 GOTO mount with Nikkor 200 mm guide lens using a ZWO ASI120MM Mini
guide camera (2.9 micron pixels)

 imaging camera
ZWO ASI6200MM-Pro monochrome full frame cooled astro-camera

exposures
Hydrogen-alpha (110 min), Red (25 min), Green (35 min) and Blue (40 min).  The color subs were 300 seconds each and H-alpha subs 600 seconds each.
 
processing
H-aRGB acquired and stacked by James Foster.  Post-processed in Adobe Photoshop Elements by Michael Stecker.
 .
photographic site:
James Foster's observatory at Pinon Pines Estates (Frazier Park California)
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frazier_Park,_California
(Bortle 4 at 5,000 feet elevation)
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Crop of "Elephant Trunk" (IC1396A)taken July, 2025 with 10-inch Newtonan telescope
and ZWO ASI6200MC-Pro color astro-camera
 file: IC1396_345min-RGBddpCROP2B-1bcra1.jpg
Click here for full resolution photo

Photographic Data
telescope:
Sky-Watcher Quattro 250P 10-inch f/4 Newtonan telescope
FL= 1,000 mm
 
mount and guiding
iOptron CEM60
Off-axis guiding

 imaging camera
ZWO ASI6200MC-Pro color cooled astro-camera

exposures
345-minutes (5.75 hours)

photographic site:
James Foster's observatory at Pinon Pines Estates (Frazier Park California)
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frazier_Park,_California
(Bortle 4 at 5,000 feet elevation)



Crop of "Elephant Trunk" (IC1396A)taken July, 2025 with 10-inch Newtonan telescope
using the Optolong L-Extreme 7nm nebular filter & ZWO ASI6200MC-Pro color astro-camera
file: C1396_115minEXfilter2a-1bcr2.jpg
Click here for full resolution photo

Photographic Data
telescope:
Sky-Watcher Quattro 250P 10-inch f/4 Newtonan telescope
FL= 1,000 mm
 
mount and guiding
iOptron CEM60
Off-axis guiding

 imaging camera
ZWO ASI6200MC-Pro color cooled astro-camera

filter
Opto;ong L-Extreme nebular filter (7nm Ha & Oxygen-III)

exposure
115-minutes (1.9 hours)

photographic site:
James Foster's observatory at Pinon Pines Estates (Frazier Park California)
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frazier_Park,_California
(Bortle 4 at 5,000 feet elevation)
**********************************
 
 
 
Earlier version with different back focus, camera tilt and exposure time


file: IC1396-HRGB-WO73ASI6200MM-fromJRF-1b.jpg