Astronomy Picture of the Day - Rosette Nebula Deep Field

Explanation: Can you find the Rosette Nebula? The red flowery-looking nebula just above the image center may seem a good choice, but that's not it. The famous Rosette Nebula is really located on the lower right, here colored blue and white, and connected to the other nebulas by gold-colored filaments. Because the featured image of Rosette's field is so wide, and because of its deep red exposure, it seems to contain other flowers. Designated NGC 2237, the center of the Rosette Nebula is populated by the bright blue stars of open cluster NGC 2244, whose winds and energetic light are evacuating the nebula's center. The Rosette Nebula is about 5,000 light years distant and, just by itself, spans about three times the diameter of a full moon. This flowery field can be found toward the constellation of the Unicorn (Monoceros).

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For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.

Non-colorized nebulae FYI (Google search results):
Nebulae, when observed without colorization, appear mostly as shades of gray to the human eye, especially under low-light conditions. This is because the human eye’s color receptors (cone cells) are not sensitive enough to detect the faint light from these distant objects. As a result, even though nebulae emit light at various wavelengths, they do not appear colorful to the naked eye or even through small telescopes.

However, some brighter nebulae, such as the Orion Nebula, can show subtle colors under ideal observing conditions. For example, the Orion Nebula can appear slightly greenish or bluish to experienced observers using larger telescopes.
These colors are due to the emission of specific wavelengths of light from gases like hydrogen and oxygen within the nebula.

In contrast, the vibrant colors seen in many astronomical images are often the result of post-processing techniques. These images are typically captured using filters that isolate specific wavelengths of light, and then colorized to highlight different features or make the data more interpretable. In some cases, colors are assigned to wavelengths outside the visible spectrum, such as infrared or X-rays, to create a visual representation of the data.

Thus, while some nebulae may show faint colors under certain conditions, the vivid, colorful images we commonly see in media are usually enhanced or artificially colored for scientific or aesthetic purposes.

I have heard talk of the Hubble Pallet being used by some astrophotographers, lots of post processing going on. I just started getting my feet wet in Astrophotography last year, and I have a LOT to learn. Mostly the software- SharpCap and Autostakkert. A friend of mine is planning on buying a dslr with the infrared rejection filter removed. I’m mainly interested in solar, lunar, and planetary photography, so my needs might not be as great.

I’ve been a visual observer for most of my life as an amateur, but my eyes are starting to give me problems (no more “faint fuzzies” at the eyepiece), so going for the bright objects and learning to photograph them is my goal now. Also, learning how to use the software is going to help keep my brain nimble.

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