M 78’s nebular complex

Messier 78 (or M 78) is a well-known reflection nebula, which is part of a vast complex of reflection nebulae, dark nebulae, variable stars and Herbig-Haro objects. M 78’s complex is located in constellation Orion, very close to the “belt”, about 3° northeast of bright star Mintaka.

Brightened by a pair of B-type stars shining at magnitude 10 and 11, M 78 holds the record as the sky’s brightest reflection nebula.

Here’s my take on M 78, imaged between 12 and 14 January 2018 through a TS 130/910 mm refractor with a Moravian G2-8300 CCD camera and Baader LRGB filters. 10-min subframes for a total of 360:80:60:70 minutes of exposure. Enjoy! :-)

0
Messrier 78 (M 78)

M78_LRGB2_web

Leave a comment