The Angel Nebula (NGC 2170, NGC 2182, & others)

The Angel Nebula consists of NGC 2170, NGC 2182, LBN 993, LBN 999, and vdB69 and more. The central object, NGC 2170, is a reflection nebula in the constellation Monoceros approximately 2,400 light-years away. The red-orange cloud in the center is NGC 2170 and is illuminated by the many nearby stars in the region. There are small emission nebulae scattered throughout as well as blue reflection nebulae (NGC 2185 and vdB 68). To top it off, dark nebulae are present in the region and make for a wonderful contrast to the brighter regions.

There are some truly gorgeous images of the region I have seen over the years but this is not one of them. Perhaps if I collected some Ha it would improve but I am not so sure. At a maximum of 42 degrees altitude to the south, I think this is at my low limit for reflection nebulae. It is the same for the Witch Head, which I have tried previously. This was one of the hardest images I have processed because the raw stacked image had so many artifacts. I was almost not going to share it but I did some processing gymnastics to make it look presentable. There are some cool details which I was able to preserve.

If you are interested in the raw raw stacked version I have attached a link.

Raw Image

NGC 2170, NGC 2182, & others

Dates: 1-25, 1-26, 1-31, 2-5
Camera: ZWO ASI294MC-Pro
Telescope: Celestron EdgeHD 800
Barlow: None
Focal Length: 2032mm (native)
F/10 (native)
Focal Reducer: Celestron .7 Reducer Lens
Mount: Orion Atlas Pro
Filter Adaptor: ZWO Filter Drawer
Filter: Baader Optolong Luminosity (2-inch)
Focuser: ZWO EAF
Autoguiding: ASI120 Mini attached to an Orion ST80
Exposure: Optolong Luminosity 213 x 90
Gain: 139
Offset 0
Temp: -20 C
Processing: Asiair app, PixInsight, Photoshop, Star Exterminator, Topaz DeNoiseAI.

https://www.instagram.com/astroquest1/
http://astroquest1.blogspot.com/
https://www.astrobin.com/users/kurtzepp/collections/
http://youtube.com/c/AstroQuest1