Sh2-142 - Wizard Nebula (2025)

This is my latest image of the colorful emission nebula Sh2-142, nicknamed the Wizard Nebula, located 8,500 light-years away in the constellation of Cepheus. The region also contains dark dust clouds, a Planetary Nebula (PK107-00.1), and a young open cluster (4 to 12 million years) designated as NGC 7380 which was discovered by Caroline Herschel in 1787. It is the hot young stars in NGC 7380 that are responsible for ionizing the surrounding gases in the nebula. Chief among the ionizing stars are DH Cephei (HD 215835), a close binary system consisting of two massive blue giants (O-type stars). The bright blue star located in the center of the image is DH Cephei.

This is a very popular object for astrophotographers, however, for some reason I have only imaged this once before and that was over seven years ago so it was time for an update. The nebulosity in this region is quite impressive and I love how the stellar winds sculpt the gas and dust giving a 3D look.

Higher Quality:
https://app.astrobin.com/u/kurtzepp?collection=712&i=46s5uj#collections

Sh2-142 - Wizard Nebula (2025)
Dates: 10-16-25, 10-17, 10-18, 10-22, 10-23, 10-24
Camera: ZWO ASI1600MM-Pro
Telescope: Astro-Tech AT115EDT 115mm Refractor Telescope
Barlow: None
Focal Length: 805mm (644mm w/ FR)
f/7 (f/5.6)
Focal Reducer: 0.8x AstroTech Field Flatterner/Focal Reducer
Mount: Orion Sirius
Filter Wheel: ZWO
EFW 8 x 1.25"
Filter: Antlia Ha, OIII, SII; ZWO R, G, B
Focuser: ZWO EAF
Autoguiding: ASI120 Mini attached to an Agena 50mm Guide Scope/ZWO 60mm Guidescope
Exposure: Ha 149 x 300, OIII 139 x 300, SII 148 x 300 R 53 x 90, G 55 x 90, B 52 x 90 (40h 20m)
Gain: 139
Offset 20
Sensor Temp: -10 C
Processing: NINA, PixInsight, Photoshop, BlurXTerminator, StarXTerminator, NoiseXTerminator, GraXpert, Bill Blanshan Star Reduction, Bill Blanshan Color Masks, Bill Blanshan Stretching, Topaz Denoise.

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NGC 7789 - Caroline's Rose (2025)

This is NGC 7789, one of the richest open star clusters in the Milky Way and goes by Caroline’s Rose cluster named after its discoverer, Caroline Herschel in 1783 (sister of William Herschel). Under dark skies the loops of stars and dark lanes resemble the swirling pattern when looking down on rose petals. It also goes by Caroline’s Haystack and the White Rose Cluster.

The plus 1000 star cluster is located in the constellation of Cassiopeia approximately 6200 light-years away with an estimated diameter of 50 light-years. Interestingly, most open star clusters are relatively young (less than 100 million years), however, NGC 7789 is about 1.5 billion years old making it one of the oldest open clusters but not quite as old as most globular clusters which can be several billion years old.

The overall field is quite impressive, filled with many colorful stars. The cluster is very close to popular nebulae such as NGC 7635, the Bubble Nebula, and there is some very faint hydrogen in this region but I really wanted to focus in on the starfield. I love colorful stars and this field has a good dynamic range.

Higher Quality:
https://app.astrobin.com/u/kurtzepp?collection=712&i=gg8vjt#collections

NGC 7789 - Caroline's Rose (2025)
Dates: 10-27-25, 10-29
Camera: ZWO ASI1600MM-Pro
Telescope: Astro-Tech AT115EDT 115mm Refractor Telescope
Barlow: None
Focal Length: 805mm (644mm w/ FR)
f/7 (f/5.6)
Focal Reducer: 0.8x AstroTech Field Flatterner/Focal Reducer
Mount: Orion Sirius
Filter Wheel: ZWO
EFW 8 x 1.25"
Filter: ZWO R, G, B, L
Focuser: ZWO EAF
Autoguiding: ASI120 Mini attached to an Agena 50mm Guide Scope/ZWO 60mm Guidescope
Exposure: L 100 x 90, R 88 x 90, G 82 x 90, B 84 x 90 (8h 51m)
Gain: 139
Offset 20
Sensor Temp: -10 C
Processing: NINA, PixInsight, Photoshop, BlurXTerminator, StarXTerminator, NoiseXTerminator, GraXpert, Bill Blanshan Color Masks, Bill Blanshan Stretching.

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