Thor’s Helmet (NGC2359)

[Dave882]

With a couple of long-overdue clear night here in Sydney I thought I’d aim at this well-imaged favourite that I’ve never actually taken on myself before. Juuuust managed to squeeze it into the fov too!

I thought with 2 nights I’d be able to walk away with a bit more data but there was a fair bit of cloud coming through in the early morning so only ended up with 5.5hrs with the dual band L-Ultimate filter and 45min no-filter for stars.

Guiding and conditions were excellent on the first night, terrible on the second, so guess it balances out to kinda average overall…

Stacked and Ha/Oiii extraction in APP, and processed combined in PI. Final touches in LightRoom.

Larger version here! (https://storage.googleapis.com/dso-browser.com/astrophotography/picture-457f3b3fdaaa41e2a05d3aa639eb9ef7-original.jpg)

Image Details:
120sec subs (5.5hrs) (L-Ultimate Filter)
30sec subs (45min) (no filter)
Celestron OAG
C14 non edge @f7 with the Starizona reducer LF
EQ8 pro
Asi2600mc pro gain 100
Asi220mm / celestron OAG
ZWO EAF
ASIAIR pro / APP / PI / LR
Bin2

Comments and suggestions welcome!
Thanks for looking.

[floyd_2]

You never disappoint Dave. Love the star colours. There's heaps of detail in there to pour over. You have to be pleased with this one. Your MC camera is doing an amazing job don't you think?

[Startrek]

Dave,
Another excellent result showing some great detail in the main structures
Love the colour and Star field too
Well done !!
A great target for OSC dualband filters as it emits primarily Oiii and some Ha
I captured it back in 2022 using my 10” down south , 2600MC and Antlia ALPT with some success. It’s definitely on my list for the 2600MM and 3nm filters

Cheers
Martin

[Dave882]

Thanks Dean& Martin I appreciate your comments.
Dean- yes I was really happy with the level of detail in particular I liked the small Ha knots up the top left. The 2600mc has been a brilliant performer for me although there’s not much that can counter the effects of the oppressive Sydney light pollution!
Martin- yes I agree this was an ideal target for dual narrowband. And gosh the data is so much easier to process. I’m glad you liked the stars- I was quite happy with the boost a mere 45min of broadband data gave.

[Nikolas]

This nebula always fascinates me with its complex structures, nice work!

[strongmanmike]

Great Helmut Dave, a must have addition to your portfolio :thumbsup:

Go the C14! :2thumbs:

Mike

[Dave882]

Thanks Mike,Nik. Yeah it’s a really interesting target up close, almost like a snr with all those swirls- but also if you’ve got a wider fov there’s so much extended nebulously as well