The California Nebula is a large h-alpha emission nebula 1,000 light years away in the constellation Perseus. The nebula emits the its red color due to atomic hydrogen excited by the ultraviolet light from Xi Perseus, the bright star in the bottom of the image. The nebula itself is about 100 light years across and spans about 2.5 degrees as seen from Earth. Near the center of the nebula is a dark bok globule with another one just above it.
| Optics: | WO 80 FD APO Refractor |
|---|---|
| Exposure: | 40X300sec. (3.33hr) |
| F/Stop: | 5.5 with WO 0.8 TypeII FF/FR |
| Mount: | Orion Atlas guided |
| Camera: | Rebel T1i/Moded,UV/IR cut filter |
| ISO: | 800 |
| Filter: | Astronomiks CLS clip-in |
| Time: | 11:31 PM |
| Date: | 12/19/2011 |
| Location: | High Bridge NJ |
| Processing: | PHD and BYEOS dithering, IP 4.5, CS2 |