NGC 7023, Iris Nebula

The Iris Nebula is one of my favorite celestial objects. Like delicate cosmic petals, clouds of interstellar dust and gas have blossomed 1,300 light-years away in the fertile star fields of the constellation Cepheus. Within the Iris, dusty nebular material surrounds a massive, hot, young star in its formative years. The dominant color of the nebula is blue, characteristic of dust grains reflecting starlight. There are also some violet to red clouds directly above and below the star, reminding us of the ionized hydrogen present from this energized star. Dark, obscuring clouds of dust and cold molecular gas are also present and can lead the eye to see other convoluted and fantastic shapes. As shown here, the Iris Nebula is about 6 light-years across. This image represents about 6 hours of light gathering.

Imaging details:

Camera- st10-sme

Scope- Mewlon 300

LRGB 170:60:60:90

Location- Starlodge Observatory