This frames the variety of bright nebulas and dark dust clouds in and around the Belt and Sword of Orion. It shows how the bright Orion Nebula is rea
This frames the variety of bright nebulas and dark dust clouds in and around the Belt and Sword of Orion. It shows how the bright Orion Nebula is really just the visible tip of a vast complex of gas and dust in Orion. Above centre is the trio of Belt stars surrounded by dust clouds, many reflecting starlight. Below the left star of the Belt, Alnitak, is the famous dark protrusion of the Horsehead Nebula, B33, small on this scale. Above Alnitak is the pinkish Flame Nebula, NGC 2024. Above that are the reflection nebulas Messier 78 and NGC 2071 embedded in lanes of brownish dust. At left is the large curving arc of Barnard's Loop, aka Sharpless 2-276, which extends down under Orion at bottom where it is more obscured by dust and so redder. Below the Belt is the Sword of Orion marked by the cyan tinted Orion Nebula, Messier 42 and 43, with the Running Man Nebula, NGC 1975, above, and all embedded in dim red and brownish dust clouds. This is a stack of 14 x 2 minute exposures with the Canon RF135mm lens at f/2 and on the Canon Ra at ISO 800. The lens had an 82mm URTH Night broadband filter on it to enhance nebulas somewhat. But I shot this under superb skies in Australia in March 2024. Tracked but not guided on the Astro-Physics AP400 mount. The Nik Collection Color EFX Detail Extactor filter and Photokemi Actions Nebula Filter set were used to bring out the dim dust clouds in processing.
Size: 4470px × 6720px
Photo credit: © Alan Dyer / VWPics / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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