VDB4

Telescope: Officina Stellare RH200 Camera: ATIK460 Filters: LRGB

VDB136

Light from the red giant star in the centre is being reflected in our direction by particles of soot and gas behind the star, giving the diffuse yellow glow of vdB 136. The area is surrounded by faint H-alpha emissions and interesting dark lanes too. This patch of sky lies about 2 degrees from the Cygnus the Swan’s brightest star, Deneb. vdB 136 is a around 2510 light years away Telescope: RH200 Camera:ATIK 460 Filters: Astrodon Gen II LRGB Total Exposure: 7h

NGC 7129

Ghost Nebula - VDB141

Ghosts chasing each other in Cepheus. VdB 141, a reflection nebula located in Cepheus Telescope: GSO RC10 (Reduced to f.5.6) Camera: QSI683L Filters: Astrodon Gen II LRGB Location: Mavrovounion Lakonias / Greece

Inside the Pelican Nebula

Telescope: GSO RC10 - Reduced to 1500mm Camera: QSI 683L Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 Filters: Astrodon LRGB+Ha 5nm Total Time: 4h L + 1.5 each colour RGB Equipment: Pegasus Astro Ultimate Powerbox, Pegasus Motor Focus Kit Location: Mavrovounion Lakonia, Greece

The Bubble Nebula - NGC 7635

NGC 7635, also called the Bubble Nebula, Sharpless 162, or Caldwell 11, is a H II region emission nebula in the constellation Cassiopeia. It lies close to the direction of the open cluster Messier 52. The "bubble" is created by the stellar wind from a massive hot, young central star. The nebula is near a giant molecular cloud which contains the expansion of the bubble nebula while itself being excited by the hot central star, causing it to glow. Telescope: GSO RC10 - Reduced to 1500mm Camera: QSI 683L Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 Filters: Astrodon LRGB+Ha 5nm Total Time: 6h L + 1.5 each colour RGB Equipment: Pegasus Astro Ultimate Powerbox, Pegasus Motor Focus Kit Location: Mavrovounion Lakonia, Greece

NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom Nebula

Ten thousand years ago, before the dawn of recorded human history, a new light would have suddenly have appeared in the night sky and faded after a few weeks. Today we know this light was from a supernova, or exploding star, and record the expanding debris cloud as the Veil Nebula, a supernova remnant. Telescope: GSO RC10 - Reduced to 1500mm Camera: QSI 683L Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 Filters: Astrodon LRGB+Ha 5nm Total Time: 5h L + 1.5 each colour RGB + 3h Ha Equipment: Pegasus Astro Ultimate Powerbox, Pegasus Motor Focus Kit Location: Mavrovounion Lakonia, Greece

The Iris Nebula - NGC7023

These clouds of interstellar dust and gas have blossomed 1,300 light-years away in the fertile star fields of the constellation Cepheus. Sometimes called the Iris Nebula, NGC 7023 is not the only nebula in the sky to evoke the imagery of flowers, though. Still, this deep telescopic view shows off the Iris Nebula's range of colors and symmetries in impressive detail. Within the Iris, dusty nebular material surrounds a hot, young star. The dominant color of the brighter reflection nebula is blue, characteristic of dust grains reflecting starlight. Central filaments of the dusty clouds glow with a faint reddish photoluminesence as some dust grains effectively convert the star's invisible ultraviolet radiation to visible red light (text taken from an APOD) Telescope: GSO RC 10 Camera: QSI 683 Mono Mount: Astrophysics Mach 1 GTO Filters: Astrodon Gen II LRGB Exposures: L bin1x2, RGB bin 2x2 Total Exposure: 6h Location: Mt. Parnon Greece

Rossete Nebula

APOD 2017 February 14 https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap170214.html The Rosette Nebula is not the only cosmic cloud of gas and dust to evoke the imagery of flowers -- but it is the most famous. At the edge of a large molecular cloud in Monoceros, some 5,000 light years away, the petals of this rose are actually a stellar nursery whose lovely, symmetric shape is sculpted by the winds and radiation from its central cluster of hot young stars. The stars in the energetic cluster, cataloged as NGC 2244, are only a few million years old, while the central cavity in the Rosette Nebula, cataloged as NGC 2237, is about 50 light-years in diameter. The nebula can be seen firsthand with a small telescope toward the constellation of the Unicorn (Monoceros). Telescope: Takahashi FSQ85 Camera: ATIK 460EX Filters: Baader LRGB Subexposures: 5mins L, 3min RGB (bin2x2) Total Exposure: 6h Location: Near Gythion , Greece

The Iris Nebula

The Iris Nebula, also NGC 7023 is a bright reflection nebula and Caldwell object in the constellation Cepheus. The pretty blue petals of the Iris Nebula span about six light-years. The colourful field-of-view stretches almost five Full Moons across the sky. Equipment used: Telescope: Takahashi FSQ ED85 Camera: ATIK490 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Filters: Astrodon Gen II LRGB Total Exposure: ~ 8h Pegasus Ultimate Powerbox Pegasus Motor Focus Kit / Autofocus

Lagoon Nebula - M8

Telescope: Tak FSQ ED85 Camera: ATIK490 Mono Filters: Baader LRGB Total exposure: 2h Location: Mt Parnon

LDN 988 Area

Takahashi FSQ 85 ATIK 490EX

California Nebula - NGC 1944

The California Nebula (NGC 1499) is an emission nebula located in the constellation of Perseus. It is so named because it appears to resemble the outline of the US State ofCalifornia on long exposure photographs. It is almost 2.5° long on the sky and, because of its very low surface brightness, it is extremely difficult to observe visually. It lies at a distance of about 1,000 light years from Earth. The California Nebula was discovered by E. E. Barnard in 1884. Telescope: Takahashi BabyQ 85 Mount: Skywatcher HEQ5 Pro Camera: QSI 683 Momo Filters: Astrodon Gen II, LRGB + Ha Subexposures: 300sec bin1 Lum, 300sec bin2 Color + Ha Total Exposure: 7h Location: Mt. Parnon, Greece

Cocoon Nebula - IC5146

Inside the Cocoon Nebula is a newly developing cluster of stars. Cataloged as IC 5146, the beautiful nebula is nearly 15 light-years wide, located some 4,000 light years away toward the northern constellation Cygnus. Like other star forming regions, it stands out in red, glowing, hydrogen gas excited by young, hot stars and blue, dust-reflected starlight at the edge of an otherwise invisible molecular cloud. In fact, the bright star near the center of this nebula is likely only a few hundred thousand years old, powering the nebular glow as it clears out a cavity in the molecular cloud’s star forming dust and gas. This color view of the Cocoon Nebula traces remarkably subtle features within and surrounding the dusty stellar nursery. Telescope: GSO RC10 Camera: ATIK 4000 Mono Mount: AP Mach 1 GTO Filters: Baader L R G B Total exposure:8h Location: Near Gythio Lakonia

LDN 1621, LDN 1622, VDB62

The two dark nebulae (LDN 1621, smaller, near the left border and LDN 1622, much bigger near the center) are projected onto a complex and extensive emission nebulosity known as Barnard's Loop, inside the molecular cloud complex named Orion B. Both nebulae are believed to be 500 light years away, much closer than the bright red hydrogen nebulae that shine behind them from about 1,600 light years. Telescope: FSQ85 Camera: ATIK 460EX Filters: Baader Ha + L + RGB (L bin1x2, Ha +RGB bin2x2) Total exposure: 9h Location: Near Gythion, Greece

The Veil Nebula Widefield

The Veil Nebula is a diffuse nebula located in the northern constellation Cygnus, the Swan. Also known as Witch’s Broom Nebula, Bridal Veil Nebula, Cirrus Nebula, or Filamentary Nebula, it constitutes the visible parts of the Cygnus Loop, a supernova remnant in Cygnus. It is located at an approximate distance of 1,470 light years from Earth. In this wide shot you can see the three main parts: the Eastern Veil, the Western Veil, and Fleming’s Triangle (Pickering’s Triangle). Telescope: Telescope: TAK FSQ85 Camera: QSI 683 Filters: RGB + Ha + O3 Total Exposure: 12h Location: Mt Parnon @ 1430m, Greece

The Elephant's Trunk nebula - IC 1396

The Elephant's Trunk nebula is a concentration of interstellar gas and dust within the much larger ionized gas region IC 1396 located in the constellation Cepheus about 2,400 light years away from Earth. The piece of the nebula shown here is the dark, dense globule IC 1396A; it is commonly called the Elephant's Trunk nebula because of its appearance at visible light wavelengths, where there is a dark patch with a bright, sinuous rim. The bright rim is the surface of the dense cloud that is being illuminated and ionized by a very bright, massive star (HD 206267) that is just to the west of IC 1396A. (In the Figure above, the massive star is just to the left of the edge of the image.) The entire IC 1396 region is ionized by the massive star, except for dense globules that can protect themselves from the star's harsh ultraviolet rays. Telescope: GSO RC 10 Mount: Astrophysics Mach 1 GTO Camera: ST10-XME Filters: Astrodon Gen2 LRGB+Ha Total Exposure: 8h

The Orion Nebula - M42

The Orion Nebula (also known as Messier 42, M42, or NGC 1976) is a diffuse nebula situated in the Milky Way south of Orion's Belt in the constellation of Orion. It is one of the brightest nebulae, and is visible to the naked eye in the night sky. M42 is located at a distance of 1,344 ± 20 light years and is the closest region of massive star formation to Earth. The M42 nebula is estimated to be 24 light years across. It has a mass of about 2000 times the mass of the Sun. Older texts frequently refer to the Orion Nebula as the Great Nebula in Orion or the Great Orion Nebula. Telescope: Takahashi FSQ 85 ED Mount: Skywatcher HEQ5-Pro Camera: QSI 683 Mono Filters: Astrodon Gen II LRGB Subexposures: 5min Total Exposure: 10h Location: Mt. Parnon Greece

The Baby Eagle Nebula (LBN 777)

Dark nebulae structures are forming a baby eagle shape. This target is rarely imaged. Very close to Pleiades this frame is a part of the Taurus molecular cloud. Telescope: Takahashi FSQ85 Camera: SBIG ST10XME Filters: Baader LRGB Location: Parnon, Greece @1430m

Blue Horsehead Nebula - IC 4592

IC 4592 (also known as the Blue Horsehead Nebula) is a reflection nebula in the Scorpius constellation that is lit by Nu Scorpii. Telescope: Takahashi BabyQ ED85 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Camera: QSI 683 (Mono) Filters: Astrodon GenII LRGB Total Exposure: 5h Location: Parnon & Filipaioi Greece

M78 Nebula

The nebula Messier 78 (also known as M 78 or NGC 2068) is a reflection nebula in the constellation Orion. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1780 and included by Charles Messier in his catalog of comet-like objects that same year. M78 is the brightest diffuse reflection nebula of a group of nebulae that include NGC 2064, NGC 2067 and NGC 2071. This group belongs to the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex and is about 1,600 light years distant from Earth. M78 is easily found in small telescopes as a hazy patch and involves two stars of 10th magnitude. These two stars, HD 38563A and HD 38563B, are responsible for making the cloud of dust in M78 visible by reflecting their light. Telescope: FSQ ED85 Camera: Atik 460 (thanks Alex LZ) Mount: EQ6 Location: Mt. Parnon, Greece

The Flaming Star Nebula - IC 405.

An emission/reflection nebula in the constellation Auriga, surrounding the bluish star AE Aurigae. Telescope: Takahashi FSQ85 Camera: ATIK 460EX Filters: Baader Synthetic Lum +RGB (bin2x2)+ Ha (bin1x1) Location: Near Gythion, Greece

Barnard 150

The Seahorse Nebula - Barnard 150 is a dark nebula in the constellation Cepheus. It is about one degree long (about two Moon widths). Telescope: Takahashi FSQ 85 Camera: ATIK 490 EX Filters: LRGB Color (RGB) bin 2x2 L bin 1x1 Total exposure: 10h Location: Mt. Parnon @ 1420m

Lagoon Nebula (M8) & Trifid Nebula (M20) Area

The dust clouds of the Milky Way are mostly dark, as is evident from a normal camera view of this part of the sky. The dark clouds contain gas and dust and are tightly constrained to the plane of the Milky Way. The dust hosts simple compounds that have condensed on the tiny grains and these molecules can be detected by radio telescopes. However, here and there stars have formed from the molecular clouds, lighting up the darkness. The brightest nebulae here are M20 (right) and M8 (left) can be seen with the unaided eye in Sagittarius, and were catalogued by Charles Messier over 200 years ago. Telescope: WO FLT98 with TRF 2008 Reducer Camera: ATIK383L+ Mount: HEQ5 Pro Filters: L+R+G+B Subexposures: 5 mins Total exposure: ~ 5h Location: Mt Parnon @ 1430m

The LDN 673 in Aquila

This target looks like a Chinese ideogram The LDN 673 is a molecular cloud complex that lies in the constellation Aquila. This region is massive — around 67 trillion kilometers (42 trillion miles across), and it is between 300-600 light years from Earth Telescope: Officina Stellare RH200 Camera: QSI 683 Mono Filters: Astrodon Gen2 LRGB Total Exposure: 5h Location: Mt Parnon Greece

LDN 778,781, 782 and vdB126 in Vulpecula

From left to right: LDN 778,781, 782 and vdB126 in Vulpecula Telescope: TAK85 with reducer Camera: QSI 683L Filters: Astrodon Gen 2 LRGB Total Exposure: 8h Location: Filipaioi, Grevena, Greece

Lbn 468, Ldn 1148, 1155, 1158, Rno 124 Cepheus

Reflection and dark nebulae in Cepheus cataloged by Beverly T. Lynds Catalogue of Bright Nebulae 1965 and Catalog of Dark Nebulae 1962. Herbig-Haro 215 is also called Gyulbudaghian’s Nebula.This little-known variable reflection nebula is similar to Hubble’s variable nebula. This nebula changes brightness and shape over many months or years. Armen Gyulbudaghian is a Russian astronomer at Byurakan Observatory. He discovered this nebula in 1977, Apparently during a survey for new Herbig-Haro objects.The object as a whole is known as HH 215; the reflection nebula is officially cataloged as GM 1-29 (Magakyan — the “M” — was co-author on the discovery paper). At the heart of the Herbig-Haro object lies the variable Herbig AbBe pre-main sequence star PV Cephei.This is a newly formed star that is surrounded by a rotating disk of material. At right angles to this disk are two jets of material, streaming away from the star at high speeds Telescope: Officina Stellare Veloce RH200 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Guiding: TS-OAG9 / Lodestar Camera: ATIK 383L+ Mono Filters: Baader LRGB Total Exposure: 6.5h Subexposures: LRGB 5min Location: Mt Parnon 18-20 July 2012

The Elephant's Trunk Nebula in Widefield - IC 1396

The Elephant's Trunk Nebula winds through the emission nebula and young star cluster complex IC 1396, in the high and far off constellation of Cepheus. The cosmic elephant's trunk is over 20 light-years long. . This image highlights the bright swept-back ridges that outline pockets of cool interstellar dust and gas. Such embedded, dark, tendril-shaped clouds contain the raw material for star formation and hide protostars within the obscuring cosmic dust. Nearly 3,000 light-years distant, the relatively faint IC 1396 complex covers a large region on the sky, spanning over 5 degrees Telescope: Officina Stellare RH200 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Camera: QSI 683 Mono Filters: Astrodon Gen 2 LRGB Total Exposure: ~ 7h Location: Mt. Parnon

Triffid Nebula - M20

Camera: Lum: QSI 683L, Color ATIK314L Telescopes: GSO RC10 Reduced to f/5.6 (Lum) WO FLT98 (Color) Mount: Astrophysics Mach 1 GTO + Skywatcher HEQ5 Filters: LRGB Location: Both in Mt Parnon

LBN 534, VDB 158

LBN 534 is an isolated and elongated molecular cloud in the constellation of Andromeda.. Either shock fronts from a supernova or ionization fronts from a massive star could have caused the shape of this cloud as well as the spatial distribution of young stars. The blue reflection nebula, vdB 158, is located at the southern end of the cloud. The nearby bright B9.5V star, HD 222142, illuminates VdB 158. Thanks to Alex for his camera and mount contribution Telescope: Tak BabyQ ED85 @450mm Mount: EQ6 Camera ATIK 460 Filters: Baader LRGB Exposure: 4h (well , this is what we have..) Location: Mt Parnon, Greece @ 1430m

VDB 152

Described as a dusty curtain or ghostly apparition a mysterious reflection nebula VdB 152 really is very faint. Far from your neighborhood on this Halloween Night, the cosmic phantom is nearly 1,400 light-years away. Also cataloged as Ced 201, it lies along the northern Milky Way in the royal constellation Cepheus. Near the edge of a large molecular cloud, pockets of interstellar dust in the region block light from background stars or scatter light from the embedded bright star giving parts of the nebula a characteristic blue color. Ultraviolet light from the star is also thought to cause a dim reddish luminescence in the nebular dust. Telescope: WIlliam Optics FLT98 Alu Camera: ATIK 383L+ FIlters: Baader LRGB Total Exposure: 7h

NGC 1333 Nebula and Stardust

NGC 1333 is seen in visible light as a reflection nebula, dominated by bluish hues characteristic of starlight reflected by dust. A mere 1,000 light-years distant toward the heroic constellation Perseus, it lies at the edge of a large, star-forming molecular cloud. This image shows details of the dusty region along with hints of contrasting red emission from Herbig-Haro objects, jets and shocked glowing gas emanating from recently formed stars. In fact, NGC 1333 contains hundreds of stars less than a million years old, most still hidden from optical telescopes by the pervasive stardust. The chaotic environment may be similar to one in which our own Sun formed over 4.5 billion years ago. Telescope: Officina Stellare RH200 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Camera: QSI 683 Mono Filters: Astrodon Gen 2 LRGB Total Exposure: 7h Location: Mt Parnon

Rho Ophiuchi Complex

This four panel mosaic gives an incredible widefield view of one of the most colourful regions in the night sky. A collection of intricate dust clouds, reflection, emission and dark nebulae and background globular clusters makes this a fascinating area Luminance taken by Angelos Kechagias with an Atik 428EX on a Nikon 50mm Lens, RGB taken by Evangelos Souglakos (me) with an Atik 4000 on a Canon 50mm Lens. Processing in Photoshop by Angelos Kechagias.

Cave Nebula Widefield - SH2-155

The Cave Nebula, Sh2-155 or Caldwell 9, is a dim and very diffuse bright nebula within a larger nebula complex containing emission, reflection, and dark nebulosity. It is located in the constellation Cepheus. Telescope: Takahashi FSQ ED85 Camera: QSI 683L Mount: Astrophysics Mach 1 GTO Filters: Astrodon Gen II LRGB Total exposure: 7h Subexposures: 5mins bin1x1 L , 5min bin 2x2 RGB Location: Mt. Parnon Greece

VDB 14 & VDB 15

These two reflection nebulae are a small part of a large dust cloud in the constellation Camelopardalis. vdB 15 is the blue area to the top and vdB 14 is the sickle-shaped blue nebula down. At a distance of about 3000 light years, magnitude 5 and magnitude 4 supergiants respectively illuminate them. Telescope: Takahashi BabyQ 85 Mount: Astrophysics Mach 1 GTO Camera: QSI 683 Mono Filters: Astrodon Gen2 LRGB Total Exposure: 10h Location: Mt Parnon & Gythion Greece

Cocoon Nebula (IC 5146) Wide Field

In this crowded starfield covering over 3 degrees within the high flying constellation Cygnus, the eye is drawn to the Cocoon Nebula. A compact star forming region, the cosmic Cocoon punctuates a long trail of obscuring interstellar dust clouds. Cataloged as IC 5146, the nebula is nearly 15 light-years wide, located some 4,000 light years away. Like other star forming regions, it stands out in red, glowing, hydrogen gas excited by the young, hot stars and blue, dust-reflected starlight at the edge of an otherwise invisible molecular cloud. In fact, the bright star near the center of this nebula is likely only a few hundred thousand years old, powering the nebular glow as it clears out a cavity in the molecular cloud's star forming dust and gas. But the long dusty filaments that appear dark in this visible light image are themselves hiding stars in the process of formation Telescope: Takahashi FSQ ED85 Camera: QSI683 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Filters: LRGB & Ha Total Exposure: ~ 12h Location: Mt Parnon - June 2014

SH2-132

Sh2-132 is extensive emission nebula visible in the constellation of Cepheus. It locates on the southern edge of the constellation, a short distance from the border with Lizard, along the plane of the Milky Way; the best time for your observation in the evening sky falls between the months of July and December and it is considerably easier for observers placed in the regions of the northern hemisphere of the Earth Telescope: Takahashi Baby Q 85 Camera: QSI 683 Mono Filters: Astrodon LRGB Gen II Mount: Astrophysics Mach 1 GTO Location: Mt. Parnon Greece Total exposure: 7h

Iris Nebula Widefield

Iris Nebula (NGC7023) wide field and friends (Ghost Nebula) Telescope: Takahashi FSQ ED85 Camera: QSI683 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Filters: LRGB Total Exposure: ~ 13h Location: Mt. Parnon & Gythion Greece

M17 - Omega Nebula in Wide Field

Sculpted by stellar winds and radiation, the star factory known as Messier 17 lies some 5,500 light-years away in the nebula-rich constellation Sagittarius. At that distance, this degree wide field of view spans almost 100 light-years. Stellar winds and energetic light from hot, massive stars formed from M17's stock of cosmic gas and dust have slowly carved away at the remaining interstellar material producing the cavernous appearance and undulating shapes. M17 is also known as the Omega Nebula or the Swan Nebula. Telescope: Officina Stellare RH200 @ f/3 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Camera: QSI 683+ Mono Filters: Astrodon LRGB+Ha Total Exposure: 6h (L:120 / R:60 / G:60: B:60 / Ha:60) Location: Elikonas Mt. Greece

Cave Nebula - SH2-155

The Cave Nebula, Sh2-155 or Caldwell 9, is a dim and very diffuse bright nebula within a larger nebula complex containing emission, reflection, and dark nebulosity. It is located in the constellationCepheus. Visually it is a difficult object, but with adequate exposure, makes a striking image. The nebula gets its name from the dark lane at the eastern side abutting the brightest curve of emission nebulosity which gives the appearance of a deep cave when seen through a telescope visually. Telescope: Officina Stellare Veloce RH200 @ f/3 Mount: Astrophysics Mach1 GTO Guiding: TS-OAG9 / Lodestar Camera: ATIK 383L+ Mono Filters: Baader LRGB Total Exposure: 6 h Subexposures: LRGB (5min) Location: Mt Parnon / Aug 2012