The Eagle Nebula
Image Details:
This target is well-known to most for the Pillars of Creation, a trio of nebulous tendrils famously captured by the Hubble Telescope in 1995. Even those not typically interested in Astronomy and Space have probably seen the photo since it commonly appears in textbooks or about any graphic involving the night sky. However, the data from the HST was presented in false color which maps the typically red-pink Hydrogen as Green. This is useful for studying contrast and the composition of an area of space and is generally more useful for scientific pursuits.
My photo is very simple by comparison since it is shot in normal broadband RGB/Color. This shows the nebula and surrounding space in its natural color, an overall pinkish tone due to the presence of ionized Hydrogen with some pale blues due to the presence of ionized Oxygen (itself a Teal color, but often attenuated to more Blue). This shot is also much wider and captures much of the surrounding nebulosity of the Milky Way which appears as a pale gold-yellow.
This was a relatively simple Summer capture. This area of space is quite bright, especially from the Bortle 1 skies of Starfront, and I felt no need to pursue and additional data using narrowband filters (yet).
Equipment:
TS Optics 86mm Petzval (486mm Focal Length F/5.6)
ZWO ASI6200MM-P, Antlia Filters
AstroPhysics Mach2GTO Mount
Autoguiding: Orion 50mm Guidescope + ZWO ASI174MM
Exposures:
Red, Green, Blue: 56, 50, 49x 300” (Total: 12h 55m)
Misc Details:
Capture Software: N.I.N.A. (capture), PHD2 (guiding)
Processing Software: PixInsight
Taken from: Starfront Observatories, TX, Bortle 1
Capture Dates: 30-31 July, 1, 4, 22-23, 29 August 2025
