Sh2-173 - Phantom of the Opera Nebula

Sh2-173 is more than a tribute to the mask worn by the Phantom of the Opera in the Broadway Musical. Claude Rains (1943) and Lon Chaney (1925) played the iconic character in the movie adaptation of the novel by Gaston Leroux and wore a similar mask. This has been on my bucket list for quite a while but was never in my FOV from my observatory until recently thanks to our neighbors removing trees. Unlike many nebula nicknames, this one actually resembles the 'Phantom of the Opera'.

Located in the constellation Cassiopeia, Sh2-173 is a hydrogen alpha (Ha) emission nebula approximately 8,800 light-years from Earth. It is very faint, requiring long exposures to bring out the nebulosity. It also sits in a very rich and colorful starfield so although I did a bit of star reduction I tried to preserve as much as possible.

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Sh2-173 - Phantom of the Opera Nebula
Dates: 7-25-24, 7-31, 8-1, 8-4
Camera: ZWO ASI1600MM-Pro
Telescope: Astro-Tech AT115EDT 115mm Refractor Telescope
Barlow: None
Focal Length: 805mm (644mm w/ FR)
f/7
Focal Reducer: 0.8x AstroTech Field Flatterner/Focal Reducer
Mount: Orion Sirius
Filter Wheel: ZWO
EFW 8 x 1.25"
Filter: Antlia Ha; ZWO R, G, B
Focuser: ZWO EAF
Autoguiding: ASI120 Mini attached to an Agena 50mm Guide Scope/ZWO 60mm Guidescope
Exposure: Ha 109 x 300, R 38 x 90, G 32 x 90, B 44 x 90 (11h 57' 30")
Gain: 139
Offset 20
Sensor Temp: 0 C
Processing: NINA, PixInsight, Photoshop, BlurXTerminator, StarXTerminator, NoiseXTerminator, GraXpert, Bill Blanshan Color Masks, Bill Blanshan Stretching, Bill Blanshan Star Reduction.