Cataloged as NGC 6357, the Lobster Nebula houses the open star cluster Pismis 24 near its centre, home to unusually bright and massive stars. The overall blue glow near the inner star forming region results from the emission of ionised hydrogen gas. The surrounding nebula, holds a complex tapestry of gas, dark dust, stars still forming, and newly born stars. The intricate patterns are caused by complex interactions between interstellar winds, radiation pressures, magnetic fields, and gravity. NGC 6357 spans about 400 light years and lies about 8,000 light years away toward the constellation of the Scorpion. (apod)
When I attempted this one last year, I failed miserably due to a mix of reducer & spacing errors so I really wanted to revisit this and get it right!
My gear is now (finally) working beautifully! So here it is in all it's lurid narrowband glory (with RGB stars) is the classic cosmic crustacean, NGC 6357.
Taken entirely remotely via Stellarmate during lockdown #4 in suburban Melbourne.
Cataloged as NGC 6357, the Lobster Nebula houses the open star cluster Pismis 24 near its centre, home to unusually bright and massive stars. The overall blue glow near the inner star forming region results from the emission of ionised hydrogen gas. The surrounding nebula, holds a complex tapestry of gas, dark dust, stars still forming, and newly born stars. The intricate patterns are caused by complex interactions between interstellar winds, radiation pressures, magnetic fields, and gravity. NGC 6357 spans about 400 light years and lies about 8,000 light years away toward the constellation of the Scorpion. (apod)
When I attempted this one last year, I failed miserably due to a mix of reducer & spacing errors so I really wanted to revisit this and get it right!
My gear is now (finally) working beautifully! So here it is in all it's lurid narrowband glory (with RGB stars) is the classic cosmic crustacean, NGC 6357.
Taken entirely remotely via Stellarmate during lockdown #4 in suburban Melbourne.
Hi Andy,
Another fantastic image! An excellent description of the lobster nebula and the subs you used. Can you tell me whether it is a North American Lobster or our Southern Rock Lobster?
Cheers Pete
P.S. When you said you captured your subs remotely was it remotely from your backyard in Burwood or from a dark sky site? I'm truly amazed if you took RBG subs from Burwood and then used them for this great image.
Last edited by pkinchington; 30-05-2021 at 09:24 PM.
P.S. When you said you captured your subs remotely was it remotely from your backyard in Burwood or from a dark sky site? I'm truly amazed if you took RBG subs from Burwood and then used them for this great image.
Hi Pete,
All subs were taken from my backyard.
I can now make dinner, watch TV etc in the comfort of my warm lounge room while the 'scope happily does it's thing outside.
I remote in via my laptop to check that all's well, and now rarely encounter issues.
It's taken a LONG time to get it all sorted out, with many hidden problems to solve and much googling, forum checking and chats to the developer. (Jasem is awesomely helpful BTW).
In fact, generally solving one issue then revealed another, but now it's all good and it's been well worth the effort.
Next on the shopping list is a rotator, then perhaps, I'll look into relocating the 'scope at a friend's dark site.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gregbradley
Very dramatic Andy. Your image really shows that giant cavern structure which I have never noticed before.
Lots of detail.
Greg.
Cheers Greg, lowering the contrast in the Ha stack has revealed a lot more than is often seen in this thing.... and nicely collimated optics and a now un-tilted sensor help enormously to reveal subtle details.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PKay
The hi res is absolutely stunning Andy.
A lot of work and it has paid off.
Very well done
Thanks Peter! Appreciate your taking the time to comment & the good vibes .
Taken entirely remotely via Stellarmate during lockdown #4 in suburban Melbourne.
Well Andy Pandy, yah canni blame your beloved "Chairman Dan", or the sex crazed security guards , for this one, can ya...huh? Enjoy the extra imaging time
Great image mate, well done....still cheating though
superb Andy, have already been admiring this one over at astrobin. The detail is amazing but I especially love the range of colour you have pulled out all the while retaining a natural feel. Wonderful!
Thanks for the good vibes Mike.
I would like to spend this lockdown imaging more often, but Chairman Dan must have a direct hotline to Thor, as it's forecast to be cloudy for the next week at least.
Quote:
Originally Posted by AdamJL
yeah 21 hours has done this justice. Beats my paltry 5 hour effort!!
Beautiful shot
Cheers Adam, it's a dim target that rewards looong integration time alright!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Robert_T
superb Andy, have already been admiring this one over at astrobin. The detail is amazing but I especially love the range of colour you have pulled out all the while retaining a natural feel. Wonderful!
Thanks very much Robert!
Being so Ha dominant, this was a very tricky one to balance the colour palette. I was keen though, not to leave anything on the table - so I'm delighted that you like it too!
Nothing too extreme in the colouring and saturation here in my opinion. I think the blend of the colours works pretty well. Detail is good even at high resolution. Well done.
Nothing too extreme in the colouring and saturation here in my opinion. I think the blend of the colours works pretty well. Detail is good even at high resolution. Well done.
Cheers Paul, only finished it the morning after the Malins closed, oh well - next year maybe
Wow.. the colours used & the cosmic koala pointing the way into the cavern, that i had to double-take due to the detail captured therein, is just stunning.
Wow.. the colours used & the cosmic koala pointing the way into the cavern, that i had to double-take due to the detail captured therein, is just stunning.
Hey thanks Andrew, glad you liked it - I'm happy with the result so at last I can move on from this one, job done!
Hey thanks Andrew, glad you liked it - I'm happy with the result so at last I can move on from this one, job done! .
Congrats on your AB IOTD today as well
The Lobster is cooked, it's done & done right, peace of mind now granted.. ill look forward to the next target then, but I think that Lobster has more to do yet.
during lockdown #4 in suburban Melbourne.
etc in the comfort of my warm lounge room while the 'scope happily does it's thing outside. 
