Michael A. Stecker
mastecker@gmail.com

 


 
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Rho Ophiuchus Cloud Complex
 Rho Ophiuchus ("Mickey Mouse" shaped stars at the upper right) is engulfed by a blue reflection nebula. Directly below it is lighter colored IC 4603 with dark interstellar dust lanes Barnard 44 & 45 extending to the left. The whole complex is northeast of Antares, the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius. This was a joint project of James
Foster and me using my Askar 103 APO 4-inch triplet refractor.  The photo was cropped and rotated.
file: RhoOphCen84min2JRF572024cr1sm.jpg
 Click here for full resolution image

Photographic Data
 Date:
May 7, 2024

 telescope:
Askar 103 APO
4-inch triplet refractor with 0.8X focal reducer
Aperture: 103 mm at f/6.8
Focal length (reduced): 560 mm
Focal ratio with 0.8X reducer: f/5.4
photo was cropped and rotated.

mount:
iOptron CEM60

 imaging camera:
ZWO ASI6200MC-Pro color astro-camera
The photo was cropped and rotated.

exposure:
200 seconds X 25 (84- minutes stacked)
guiding:
SVBony 60 mm f/4 (FL= 240 mm) guide scope with ZWO ASI120MM-mini guide camera
 
processing
Aquired by James Foster with Maxim DL.  Stacked in ASI Studio.
Post-processed in Adobe Photoshop Elements by Michael Stecker.
The photo was cropped and rotated.
 .
photographic site:
James Foster's observatory at Frazier Park California
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frazier_Park,_California
(Bortle 4 at 5,500 feet elevation)
 
 
 

Widefield full-frame view of Antares-Rho Ophiuchus Complex
At the lower left is a large orange-yellow dust cloud surrounding the star Antares in Scorpius with globular cluster M4 above and red emission nebula Cederblat 130 to the upper right of M4.  Near the center is the light blue nebula IC 4603 with dark nebulae B44 and B45 below. Triplet star Rho Ophiuchus with surrounding blue reflection nebula is on the right.  North is up.
 file: RhoOph1_316min_GraXpert2ndAttempt3final2-ahr3rxsm.jpg
 Click here for full resolution image

telescope:
Askar 103 APO
4-inch triplet refractor with 0.6X focal reducer
Aperture: 103 mm at f/6.8
Focal length (reduced): 412 mm
Focal ratio with 0.6X reducer: f/4

imaging camera:
ZWO ASI6200MC-Pro color astro-camera

exposure:
316- minutes (5.26 hours)