IC 5070, or the pelican nebula, was one of my recent targets. Several nights were set aside for this object due to the amount of data needed (even then it can still use more). A total of 14 hours was taken with 9-hour and 4-hour pictures for comparison which was taken over March and April.
The region, 1800 Ly away, is associated with the larger North American Nebula and is primarily an HII region along with dark dust clouds giving the appearance of a pelican (I am sceptical on that one...). Its star-forming regions are heating the cold gas ionizing the gas as it moves out. IC5070 is part of the Cygnus constellation orbiting the Northern star Polaris. and does not set for the Northern Hemisphere. IC 5070 is close to the star Deneb and shows 56 and 57 Cyg within the pictures which are the two brightest stars in the photos. The 14-hour exposure pictures were based on 600-sec exposures with a total of eighty-eight exposures at my bortal four sites. using the following Skywatcher 72ed Pro Skywatcher eq5 pro Zwo ASI 533mc Pro Zwo ASI 120 mm mini guide camera with 30mm Zwo 30mm guide scope all controlled by the Zwo Asiair Pro Filters - Optolong L-eXtreme 1.25mm next to the sensor |
The above two pictures are from the same data but with slightly different processing. You can see the different outcomes from different processing. The right-hand side is red due to the splitting of the channels and linear fit to the red, whereas on the left side version the channels are not linked and stretched, showing a more natural colour.
Below are 4 hours and 9 hours of exposure with slightly different processing using Pixinsight.
Below are 4 hours and 9 hours of exposure with slightly different processing using Pixinsight.
Below is the location of the Pelican nebula which is to the left of Deneb. The two stars circled in the left picture are the two bright stars 56 Cyg and 57 Cyg.
Pelican Nebula is an easy target to picture, but long exposure times are needed to get all the detail from the dust lanes. I hope this encourages you to try it, especially since it is a circumpolar target (never sets below the horizon)
Depending on your scope and camera your FOV will change on the target. Do not forget to rotate your camera to get the best FOV, this can be checked in software such as Stellarium and Telescopius. Just enter your details of the scope and camera and rotate to your liking. Then just rotate to suit your Camera.
The challenge is, as always, in the processing stages where your exposures will now become personal to how you like it. And if like me, you will keep trying to process it repeatedly, trying to get the result increasingly to your liking as you improve your knowledge in processing.
Location.
RA 20 51 46.13 DEC +44 26 49.8
Depending on your scope and camera your FOV will change on the target. Do not forget to rotate your camera to get the best FOV, this can be checked in software such as Stellarium and Telescopius. Just enter your details of the scope and camera and rotate to your liking. Then just rotate to suit your Camera.
The challenge is, as always, in the processing stages where your exposures will now become personal to how you like it. And if like me, you will keep trying to process it repeatedly, trying to get the result increasingly to your liking as you improve your knowledge in processing.
Location.
RA 20 51 46.13 DEC +44 26 49.8
My latest version of IC5070 is currently on 45 minutes with my RASA8 setup. During the year I aim to put a large number of hours into this target. But for now, this is the current picture of this target.