The Pacman Nebula
The Pacman Nebula (NGC281) is a gas cloud located in the constellation Cassiopeia. This nebula is named after the classic arcade game character.
Despite being fairly bright, it cannot be spotted with the naked eye due to its composition of gases. You might be able to see it using a pair of binoculars or a visual telescope from a very dark location. An easy way to locate is by finding the constellation’s iconic “W” shape and, from the middle star, aim just a bit “under” the W.
Specifications:
Designation: NGC281
Known As: The Pacman Nebula
Apparent Size: 35′ x 30′
Magnitude (lower is brighter): 7.4
Distance from Earth: 9,200 LY
Two Hour Imaging Using a Bicolor Filter
The image above was taken in a Bortle 7 backyard sky, over the coarse of two nights, using the ZWO Duo-Band Filter. This only allows Ha and OIII light through to the sensor, giving rich red and teal colors.
EQUIPMENT
Telescope: Apertura 60EDR
Mount: Skywatcher EQ6R-Pro
Camera: ZWO ASI533MC Pro
Guiding: ZWO ASI120MM Mini
Brain: ZWO ASIair Pro
Filters: ZWO Duo-Band Filter
ACQUISITION
Integration Time: 3.1 hours
RGB: 38 x 300sec
BIN: 1×1
Gain: 110
Temperature: -10° C
Bortle Scale: 7
CALIBRATION
Darks: 10
Flats: 30
Dark Flats: 30
Offset/Bias: 30
The Cassiopeia Constellation
Cassiopeia (Seated Queen) is easily recognizable due to its distinctive ‘W’ shape, formed by five bright stars.
A dense portion of the Milky Way goes through Cassiopeia containing a number of open star clusters, galactic disc stars, and nebulae, including the Pacman Nebula, Heart Nebula and the Soul Nebula.
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*General information regarding constellations, galaxies, nebulae, and planets have been sourced from: AstroBackyard, VisibleDark, Wikipedia, EarthSky, and NASA.