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Showing posts with label nebula. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nebula. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 21, 2022

Milky Way, 12 years, 1250 hours of exposures and 125 x 22 degrees of sky THIS IS A PERMANENT POST, NEW POSTS ARE AFTER THIS POST

You can buy prints by using the contact form at right


It took nearly twelve years to collect enough data for this high resolution gigapixel class mosaic image of the Milky Way.  Total exposure time used is around 1250 hours between 2009 and 2021.


" I can hear music in this composition, from the high sounds of sparcs and bubbles at left  all the way to a deep and massive sounds at right."


The final photo is about 100 000 pixels wide, it has 234 individual mosaic panels stitched together and 1,7 gigapixels. (Click for a large image) All the frames used are marked in this image. Since many of sub-images and mosaics are independent artworks it leads to a very complex mosaic structure. 


From Taurus to Cygnus
Click for a large image, it's really worth it! (7000 x 1300 pixels)

Image in mapped colors from the light emitted by an ionized elements, hydrogen = green, sulfur = red and oxygen = blue. NOTE, the apparent size of the Moon in a lower left corner. NOTE 2, there are two 1:1 scale enlargements from the full size original at both ends of the image

NEW, A HD-video from Germany shows my photo in full glory

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-Z60eZ4yqM
(Video in Germany but images are the international language)


Close ups form the parts of the Grande Mosaic
Taurus side of the mosaic, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/02/a-new-mosaic-image-from-taurus-to.html



A closeup from large panorama to show the overall resolution
Click for a large image

The California Nebula, NGC 1499, can be seen at bottom left of the large mosaic image.
There are about 20 million individual stars visible in the whole mosaic image.



Orientation and details
Click for a large image








Imaging info

Image spans 125 x 22 degrees of  the Milky About 20 million individual stars are visible in my photo!

It took almost twelve years to finalize this mosaic image. The reason for a long time period is naturally the size of the mosaic and the fact, that image is very deep. Another reason is that I have soht most of the mosaic frames as an individual compositions and publish them as independent artworks. That leads to a kind of complex image set witch is partly overlapping with a lots of unimaged areas between and around frames. I have shot the missing data now and then during the years and last year I was able to publish many sub mosaic images as I got them ready first.

My processing workflow is very constant so very little tweaking was needed between the mosaic frames. Total exposure time is over 1250 hours. Some of the frames has more exposure time, than others. There are some extremely dim objects clearly visible in this composition, like a extremely dim supernova remnant W63, the Cygnus Shell. It lays about six degrees up from North America nebula and it can be seen as a pale blue ring. I spent about 100 hours for this SNR alone. An other large and faint supernova remnant in Cygnus can be seen at near right edge of the image. G65.5+5.7 is as large as more famous Veil nebula. There are over 60 exposure hours for this SNR alone.  (Veil SNR is just outside of the mosaic area for compositional reasons but can be seen in "Detail" image above.) 


The Mosaic Work, technical info

I have used several optical configurations for this mosaic image during the years. Up to 2014 I was using an old Meade LX200 GPS 12" scope, QHY9 astrocam, Canon EF 200mm f1.8 camera optics and baader narrowband filter set. After 2014 I have had 10-micron 1000 equatorial mount, Apogee Alta U16 astro camera, Tokina AT-x 200mm f2.8 camera lens and the Astrodon 50mm square narrowband filter set. I have shot many details with a longer focal length, before 2014 by using Meade 12" scope with reducer and after 2014 Celestron EDGE 11" and reducer. Quider camera has been Lodestar and Lodestar II.

I took my current toolset as a base tool since it has a relatively high resolution combined to a very large field of view. Also it collects photons very quickly since it's undersampled and I can have very dim background nebulosity visible in very short time (many times 30 min frame is enough)

I do all my mosaic work under the PhotoShop, Matching the separate panels by using stars as an indicator is kind of straight forward work. My processing has become so constant, that very little tweaking is needed between separate frames, just some minor levels, curves and color balance. 

I have used lots of longer focal length sub-frames in my mosaic to boost details. (See the mosaic map at top of the page) To match them with shorter focal length shots I developed a new method.

Firstly I upscale the short focal length frames about 25% to have more room for high resolution images.Then I match the high res photo to a mosaic by using the stars as an indicator. After that I remove all the tiny stars from the high res image. Next I separate stars from low res photo and merge the starless high res data to a starless low res frame. And finally I place the removed low res stars back at top of everything with zero data lost. Usually there are some optical distortions and it's seen especially in a star field. Now all my stars are coming from a same optical setup and I don't have any problems with distortions. (I'm using the same star removal technique as in my Tone Mapping Workflow)



Closeups from large panorama to show the overall resolution
Click for a large image

Image in mapped colors from the light emitted by an ionized elements, hydrogen = green, sulfur = red and oxygen = blue. 

A 1:3 resolution close up from the photo above
Click for a large image,

A closeup from the main image shows the Sharpless 124 at up and the Cocoon nebula with a dark gas stream at bottom.

From Bubble to Cave Nebula
Image info, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/03/from-bubble-to-cave-nebula-area.html

The tulip nebula area
The Tulip Nebula, Sh2-101, can be seen at center right, there is also a black hole Cygnus X-1
The blog post with technical details can be seen here, 
https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/10/the-tulip-nebula-in-cygnus-sh2-101.html

The supernova remnant G65.3+5.7

My Observatory,


Not an igloo, this is reality of astro photographing in Finland


Thursday, March 3, 2022

Sharpless 114, a Cosmic Dragon, is now the Ukrainian Ironbelly



This cosmic photograph is dedicated to Ukrainian people and a deadly fight they are forced to. 

The whole world is now witnessing the barbaric actions of the brutal Russian dictator Putin. As an artist and astrophotographer, I thought about what I could do to help Ukraine and its people. All proceeds from the sale of this NFT will go to efforts supporting the Ukrainian people during this war.

I have renamed Sharpless 114, the Flying Dragon Nebula, to the Ukrainian Ironbelly, after a dragon seen in Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2


UKRAINIAN IRONBELLY
(Click for a large image)

 
Upper imageFlying Dragon nebula, Sharpless 114 (Sh2-114)
Bottom Image, Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon - as seen in Harry Potter Movie
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 
WB Studio Tour Entrance Claire Evans / Alamy Stock Photo


4K MOVIE,
SHARPLESS 114, THE UKRAINIAN IRONBELLY

4K movie, best seen as full screen


A story behind this artwork

Few days ago I was working with my new photo, showing a rarely imaged object Sharpless 114 in Eastern part of constellation Cygnus, the Swan. The official nickname for the object is the Flying Dragon Nebula. As I worked with this photo, I had a strong feeling that I have seen it before but I couldn't remember where.

I woke up in the middle of the night realizing that I have seen this nebula in the movie,  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2  (Yes, I'm a nerd)

There is a magical creature in a movie, a massive dragon called the Ukrainian Ironbelly. It turned out to be the creature that among other things, helped Ukrainians during the WW1 as a "wizarding air force" (Source Harry Potter Fandom Wiki)

I believe that this can be a great symbol for the Ukrainian fight against the Russian monsters.

This is also a great symbol for a modern version of Ukrainian Ironbelly, the Turkish made drone, Bayraktar-TB2, a most important weapon in war against Russians tanks in Ukraine. As a dragon, this drone is producing a steel melting "jet of fire" against murderess Russian main battle tanks and saves countless of Ukrainian lives as we speak.

This is an extremely personal art project to me as a Finnish citizen. We have a 1340 km (830 mi) common border with Russia and there is a huge risk that we might be the next victims of the brutal dictator of Russia.

All proceeds from the sale of this NFT will go to efforts supporting the Ukrainian people during this war.


History of Ukrainian Ironbelly by Harry Potter Fandom
Source: https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/Ukrainian_Ironbelly

Ironbellies had been subject to constant observation by the Ukrainian wizarding authorities, ever since a particular Ironbelly carried off a sailing ship from the Black Sea in 1799. Thankfully, the boat was empty at the time.

In 1926, Newt Scamander mentioned to Jacob Kowalski that he had previously worked with Ukrainian Ironbellies during the First World War. In that same war, Ukrainian Ironbellies were also considered for use in a wizarding air force. The Ironbelly could produce jets of flame up to 3,560 degrees Fahrenheit (1960 degrees Celsius).


It does look like a dragon
(Click for a large image)




This artwork is also a symbol of the Bayraktar-TB2 drone, a modern version of Ukrainian Ironbelly. It has saved countless of Ukrainian lives from a barbaric attack of the brutal dictator Putin

This Turkish drone has saved countless of Ukrainian lives from a barbaric attack of the brutal dictator Putin


INFO about Sharpless 114, Sh2-114

Sh2-114 is a complex and unusual HII emission nebula. Its complex, wispy structure is likely the result of winds from hot, massive stars interacting with the magnetic fields in the interstellar medium. But very little is known about it. (Source, https://www.noao.edu/image_gallery/html/im1112.html)


Technical details of the photo

I have combined the old and new data by my new powerful imaging and processing method,
the VARES (VAriable RESolution imaging)

Processing workflow

Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.
Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.
Deconvolution with a CCDStack2 Positive Constraint, 21 iterations, added at 25% weight
Color combine in PS CS3
Levels and curves in PS CS3.

Imaging optics
Celestron Edge HD 1100 @ f7 with 0,7 focal reducer for Edge HD 1100 telescope

Mount
10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x2 and SXV-AOL



Astrodon filter, 5nm H-alpha
Astrodon filter, 3nm O-III
Astrodon filter, 3nm S-II

Exposure times
H-alpha, 9x 1200s = 3h
O-III, 3 x 1200s binned = 1h 
S-II,  3 x 1200s binned = 1h 

New Data

Imaging optics
Tokina AT-x f2.8 camera lens

Mount
10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x 2 and an old spotting scope of Meade LX200

Astrodon filters,
5nm H-alpha 3nm S-II and 3nm O-III

Exposure time

H-alpha, 15 x 1200 s, binned 1x1 = 5 h
O-III, 1x 1200 s, binned 2x2 = 20 min.
S-II, 1 x 1200 s. binned 2x2 = 20 min.

Sharpless 114, orientation in Cygnus

The Sh2-114 is marked as white rectangle




Sunday, February 27, 2022

Cederblad 214, the Cosmic Question Mark

I have published this photo back in February 2020 but I have done some reprocessing and repost this image now since this photo of Cosmic Question Mark has symbolic value to me. A cosmic curiosity is the very reason I'm doing this difficult, and sometimes frustrating, form of nature photographing art.

Cederblad 214, the Cosmic Question Mark
Click for a large image

Image info, technical data and more images of this object, https://tinyurl.com/yeykd3wc








Monday, February 14, 2022

Supernova remnant HB3 and the cosmic heart

 I have shot this target originally at January 14 2020 and it was the second light to my modified Tokina lens. Now I have reprocessed the data and I do like this result much better.

 new imaging system based on Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens.


The Heart Nebula, IC 1805
Please, click for a large image

Going very deep just in two hours! Image is in visual color palette from emission of an ionized hydrogen and oxygen. R=hydrogen, G=Oxygen and B=oxygen. I have made a starless version out of this image, it can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/01/an-animated-heart-nebula-ic1805805-with.html



SUPERNOVA REMNANT 132.7+1.3 (HB3)
IC 1805 in visual palette
Please, click for a large image


Supernova remnant

In this photo there is a large supernova remnant, marked as a white circle. I haven't seen any photos of it before. I must take more O-III exposures to see, if I'm able to pick up any signal from this supernova remnant. 

Radio image of the area shows mostly signal from OB6


SNR 132.7+1.3 at upper right. Source and more information, http://galaxymap.org/drupal/node/103


Technical details

Processing workflow
Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.
Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.
Deconvolution with a CCDStack2 Positive Constraint, 33 iterations, added at 50% weight
Color combine in PS CS3
Levels and curves in PS CS3.

Imaging optics
Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens

Mount
10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters
Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel
Guider camera, Lodestar x 2 and an old spotting scope of Meade LX200

Astrodon filters,
5nm H-alpha 3nm S-II and 3nm O-III

Total exposure time
H-alpha, 12 x 600 s, binned 1x1 = 2 h
O-III, 3x 600 s, binned 1x1 = 30 min..
S-II, 2x1200 s, binned 2x2 = 40 min.

INFO About undersampling etc

The CCD I'm using has kind of large pixels, 9 microns, so I'm undersampled, the image scale is almost 5 arc seconds / pixel. Undersampling is not a bad thing when my targets are large and dim nebula complexes. This system collects photons very fast!

I selected the Heart Nebula as a target since I have plenty of reference material for it. Another reason is interesting and rarely imaged area after the bright tip of the heart. There are some remnants of a supernova explosion. I was really thrilled, when I saw the final stack of 12 600s H-alpha light frames. (Equal to 2h of exposures) I never have seen so much background nebulae and details from this popular target.
Beside 2h of H-alpha (Light from an ionized hydrogen) I shot 30 min of O-IIII (Light from an ionized Oxygen) To be able to make an image in visual palette.

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Cygnus Mosaic in Visual Colors

 Three Musketeers of Swan 

Deepest and most detailed image showing the whole constellation Cygnus ever taken

There are three large supernova remnants visible in this image. The Veil nebula is the most bright of them, other two are really dim and diffused. I spent about 200 exposure hours for those two alone to show them well. I call this trio to the Three musketeers. 

I like the new composition, it's very dynamic and shows the whole constellation Cygnus first time ever at this detail level and deepness. I haven't seen anything like this before. Image spans now 31 x 23 degrees of sky and has 118 individual frames in it. total exposure time is now around 700 hours and the resolution 20.000 x 25.500 pixels. Image it took over a decade to finalize this photo between 2010 and 2021.

The mapped color version  of this mosaic can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/12/cygnus-mosaic-gets-large.html

Bang, Bang & Bang
Three large supernova remnants in the same field of view
Click for a large image

Image is in visual palette from emission of an ionized elements, hydrogen (H-alpha), sulfur (S-II) and oxygen (O-III). Red=Hydrogen + 33% sulfur, Green=oxygen and Blue=oxygen + 33% hydrogen to compensate otherwise missing H-beta emission.

ZOOMABLE VERSION



Three Large Supernova Remnants
Click for a large image

Locations and names of the supernova remnants

INFO

Three supernova remnants, two Wolf Rayet stars and a black hole

In the orientation image above, there are three large supernova remnants visible, first the Cygnus Shell W63 , bluish ring at middle left, secondly the large SNR G65.3+5.7 at upper right and the third is a brighter SNR, the Veil nebula at right edge of the image.

Beside three supernova remnants there are two Wolf Rayet stars with outer shell formations. NGC 6888, the Crescent Nebula at center of the image and the WR 134, it can be seen as a blue arch just right from the Crescent Nebula, near the Tulip nebula.

Next to the Tulip Nebula lays a Black hole Cygnus X-1

Constellation Cygnus is an endless source of celestial wonders, both scientifically and aesthetically. For me, as an visual artist, this are of night sky is very inspiring There are endless amount of  amazing shapes and structures, I can spend rest of my life just shooting images from this treasury.

Equipments used

I have used several optical configurations for this mosaic image during the years. Up to 2014 I was using an old Meade LX200 GPS 12" scope, QHY9 astrocam, Canon EF 200mm f1.8 camera optics and baader narrowband filter set. After 2014 I have had 10-micron 1000 equatorial mount, Apogee Alta U16 astro camera, Tokina AT-x 200mm f2.8 camera lens and the Astrodon 50mm square narrowband filter set. I have shot many details with a longer focal length, before 2014 by using Meade 12" scope with reducer and after 2014 Celestron EDGE 11" and reducer. Quider camera has been Lodestar and Lodestar II.

Monday, December 20, 2021

Cygnus mosaic gets large

 Three Musketeers of Swan 
Deepest and most detailed image showing the whole constellation Cygnus ever taken

The new composition is made so that the veil nebula supernova remnant fits to the field of view.
There are three large supernova remnants visible in this image. The Veil nebula is the most bright of them, other two are really dim and diffused. I spent about 200 exposure hours for those two alone to show them well. I call this trio to the Three musketeers

I like the new composition, it's very dynamic and shows the whole constellation Cygnus first time ever at this detail level and deepness. Least I haven't seen anything like this before. Image spans now 31 x 23 degrees of sky and has 118 individual frames in it. total exposure time is now around 700 hours and the resolution 20.000 x 25.500 pixels. Image it took over a decade to finalize this photo between 2010 and 2021.

The previous version  of this mosaic can be seen here, Great Mosaic of Cygnus  

Bang, bang & bang
Three large supernova remnants in the same field of view
Click for a large image

This is a large area of sky, it spans 31 x 23 degrees of sky. Image is in mapped colors, from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulphur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.  



ZOOMABLE VERSION

Image is reduced to 6000 x 7700 pixels size from the original 20.000 x 25.500 pixels.


118 Mosaic Panels
Click for a large image

All the 112 frames used are shown in this image. Since many of the frames are originally shot as independent artworks, panel structure is very complex. Also different instruments has a different field of view and resolution, so mosaic panels are at three different size.   


DETAILS
Click for a large image


Three large supernova remnants in constellation Cygnus, the Swan, are in image as colored circles
NOTE, there is an apparent size of the Moon as a scale at lower right corner in a grayscale image.



INFO

Three supernova remnants, two Wolf Rayet stars and a black hole

In the orientation image above, there are three large supernova remnants visible, first the Cygnus Shell W63 , bluish ring at middle left, secondly the large SNR G65.3+5.7 at upper right and the third is a brighter SNR, the Veil nebula at right edge of the image.

Beside three supernova remnants there are two Wolf Rayet stars with outer shell formations. NGC 6888, the Crescent Nebula at center of the image and the WR 134, it can be seen as a blue arch just right from the Crescent Nebula, near the Tulip nebula.

Next to the Tulip Nebula lays a Black hole Cygnus X-1, it's marked in small closeup image of the Tulip Nebula at center right in orientation image above. 

Constellation Cygnus is an endless source of celestial wonders, both scientifically and aesthetically. For me, as an visual artist, this are of night sky is very inspiring There are endless amount of  amazing shapes and structures, I can spend rest of my life just shooting images from this treasury.

Equipments used

I have used several optical configurations for this mosaic image during the years. Up to 2014 I was using an old Meade LX200 GPS 12" scope, QHY9 astrocam, Canon EF 200mm f1.8 camera optics and baader narrowband filter set. After 2014 I have had 10-micron 1000 equatorial mount, Apogee Alta U16 astro camera, Tokina AT-x 200mm f2.8 camera lens and the Astrodon 50mm square narrowband filter set. I have shot many details with a longer focal length, before 2014 by using Meade 12" scope with reducer and after 2014 Celestron EDGE 11" and reducer. Quider camera has been Lodestar and Lodestar II.

Monday, December 13, 2021

The Pelican Nebula with new data

 I originally publish this nebula image at December 2016. After that, I have shot some very high resolution material from the same area of sky and I decided to upgrade my old image with better data. I'm kind of happy with the result, especially the details in dark nebulae are much sharper now and shows the complex structures of unionized gas and dust. Main reason is the long exposure time used, for H-alpha alone, there are 30 hours of exposures. Total exposure time is around 60 hours.

The dark nebula in the upper part of the photo is the gas bridge splitting visually the Pelican Nebula and the North America nebula so  that the they look like two separate nebula. In reality they are actually a one large emission area.

Pelican Nebula, constellation Cygnus, the Swan
Click for a large image

Image is in mapped colours, from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulphur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen. 
The older version of this image can be seen here: https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2016/12/pelican-nebula-two-frame-mosaic.html


Zoomable Image




Orientation in large context

The North America Nebula can be seen at upper part of the image




Wednesday, November 24, 2021

The Great Wall of Cygnus

 Due to very cloudy weather I have remade some of my older photos, this time the Cygnus Wall has been remade. This is a combination of several older images from 2008, 2010 and 2014. Two different longer focal length telescope was used, The Meade LX200 GPS 12" and Celestron Edge 11". Beside long focal length images material from shorter focal length optics was used from the Canon EF 200mm f1,8 and Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera optics. Older material was taken with the QHY9 astro camera and after 2014 Apogee Alta U16 camera was used. Total exposure time is around 30 hours.

The Great Wall of Cygnus
Click for a large image 


Mapped colors from an emission of the ionized elements, Red=Sulfur, Green=Hydrogen and the Blue =Oxygen.


 Wider field
Click for a large image 




Zoomable Photo




Info about imaging technique

I have used my new processing/imaging technique VARES for this new composition (VAriable Resolution Imaging) It's really powerful toolset when data from very different focal lengths are combined to a single high resolution image. The principle is that the high signal/noise elements are from the long focal length instruments and the low signal/noise data from the short focal length optics is used to boost relatively featureless and very dim image elements. 


Orientation in North America and Pelican nebula complex



Thursday, October 7, 2021

Filaments of Veil in mapped colors

 I shot most of the lights for this image back in 2016, now I have added some new material to it and reprocessed the whole image. A version in visual color palette can be seen here,  https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/09/filaments-of-veil-nebula-snr.html

Photo was shot with a Celestron Edge HD 11" telescope, Astrodon naarrow band filters and Apogee Alta U16 astro camera. New data is shot with a shorter focal length instrument, Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens, same camera and filters. Dim background emission is taken from a new material and added to this photo. 

Total exposure time is now 44 hours for the whole three frame mosaic and the resolution is 11.000 x 4000 pixels.

Filaments of central veil
Click for a large image (1100 x 2900 pixels)

Image is in mapped colors, from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulphur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen


A closeup
Click for a large image

The Pickering's Triangle part of the Veil Nebula


Orientation
Click for a large image


INFO

Since all of the heavier elements are born in exploding stars, we all are children of supernovae. Veil Nebula is located in the constellation Cygnus at a distance of 1500 light-years. It spans three degrees of sky, (Moon has an angular diameter of 0,5 degrees at the sky) real diameter is around 70 light-years. I collected data for the photo between 2012-2020 and I made this 3D model in 2021,exposure time is 45 hours

A 3D-study of Veil nebula SNR
3D-study of Veil Nebula Photo


Every single pixel in this 3d-animation is from the original 2D-image above. The model is based on on known scientific facts, deduction and some artistic creativity. The result is an appraised simulation of reality. Astronomical photos are showing objects as paintings on a canvas, totally flat. In reality, they are three dimensional forms floating in three dimensional space. The purpose of my 3d-experiments is to show that and Give an idea, how those distant objects might look in reality.

INFO About my 3D-transformation technique and large animation here: https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/10/unveiling-veiled.html





Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Unveiling The Veiled

The Veil nebula supernova remnant in Cygnus. Original image was shot with the Canon EF 200 mm f1.8 camera optics full open, QHY9 astro camera and Baader narrowband filters at 2013.

New data is shot with Tokina 300mm f2.8 camera optics and Celestron Edge HD 11" telescope, Apogee Alta U16 astro camera with Astrodon narrowband filters between 2016 - 2020
Total exposure time is now about 45 hours.

The Veil nebula @SuperRare auction 
Animation,
 https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/unveiling-the-veiled-volume-29145
Photo, https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/unveiling-the-veiled-29137

Veil nebula Unveiled

Click for a large image, 1250 x 1700 pixels

A very deep image of the veil nebula supernova remnant in mapped colors.
Nebula in visual colors from light emitted by an ionized elements can be seen here,
https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/09/veil-nebula-unveiled-ii.html

3D-study of Veil Nebula Photo


Every single pixel in this 3d-animation is from the original 2D-image above. The model is based on on known scientific facts, deduction and some artistic creativity. The result is an appraised simulation of reality. Astronomical photos are showing objects as paintings on a canvas, totally flat. In reality, they are three dimensional forms floating in three dimensional space. The purpose of my 3d-experiments is to show that and Give an idea, how those distant objects might look in reality.

INFO


Since all of the heavier elements are born in exploding stars, we all are children of supernovae. Veil Nebula is located in the constellation Cygnus at a distance of 1500 light-years. It spans three degrees of sky, (Moon has an angular diameter of 0,5 degrees at the sky) real diameter is around 70 light-years. I collected data for the photo between 2012-2020 and I made this 3D model in 2021,exposure time is 45 hours

How the 3D-model is made


My Moleskine notebook pages from 2008, I planned how to convert nebulae to 3D


For as long as I have captured images of celestial objects, I have always seen hem three-dimensionally in my head. The scientific information makes my inner visions much more accurate, and the 3-D technique I have developed enables me to share those beautiful visions with others.

How accurate my 3-D-visions are depending on how much information I have and how well I implement it.

The final 3-D-image is always an appraised simulation of reality based on known scientific facts, deduction, and some artistic creativity.

After I have collected all the necessary scientific information about my target, I start my 3-D conversion from stars. Usually there is a recognizable star cluster which is responsible for ionizing the nebula. We don’t need to know its absolute location since we know its relative location. Stars ionizing the nebula have to be very close to the nebula structure itself. I usually divide up the rest of the stars by their apparent brightness, which can then be used as an indicator of their distances, brighter being closer. If true star distances are available, I use them, but most of the time my rule of thumb is sufficient. By using a scientific estimate of the distance of the Milky Way object, I can locate the correct number of stars in front of it and behind it.

Emission nebulae are not lit up directly by starlight; they are usually way too large for that. Rather, stellar radiation ionizes elements within the gas cloud and the nebula itself is glowing light, the principle is very much the same as in fluorescent tubes. The thickness of the nebula can be estimated from its brightness, since the whole volume of gas is glowing, brighter means thicker.

By this means, forms of the nebula can be turned to a real 3-D shape. Nebulae are also more or less transparent, so we can see both sides of it at the same time, and this makes model-making a little easier since not much is hidden.

The local stellar wind, from the star cluster inside the nebula, shapes the nebula by blowing away the gas around the star cluster. The stellar wind usually forms a kind of cavity in the nebulosity. The same stellar wind also initiates the further collapse of the gas cloud and the birth of the second generation of stars in the nebula. The collapsing gas can resist the stellar wind and produces pillar like formations which must point to a cluster.

Ionized oxygen (O-III) glows with a bluish light, and since oxygen needs a lot of energy to ionize it, this can only be achieved relatively close to the star cluster in the nebula. I use this information to position the O-III area (the bluish glow) at the correct distance relative to the heart of the nebula.

Many other small indicators can be found by carefully studying the image itself. For example, if there is a dark nebula in the image, it must be located in front of the emission one, otherwise we couldn’t see it at all.

Using the known data in this way I build a kind of skeleton model of the nebula. Then the artistic part is mixed with the scientific and logical elements, and after that the rest is very much like creating a sculpture on a cosmic scale

3D-model without textures







Monday, October 4, 2021

Three 3D-conversions out of my astronomical photos

 I have made dozens of 3D-conversions out of my astronomical photos. As an artist I like to find a new views to the reality. My models are not just a guesswork, the conversion is based on real scientific data.
At the end of this blog post there is a short explanation, how I do my conversion work.


Veil nebula in O-III light alone

Original astronomical photo about part of the Veil nebula SNR in O-III light only.

3D-study of Veil Nebula Photo






NGC1499 the California Nebula

My photo of California Nebyla in mapped colors


3D-study of California Nebula Photo







Bubble Nebula

My photo of Bubble Nebula in mapped colors


3D-study of Bubble Nebula Photo




How 3D-models are made

My Moleskine notebook pages from 2008, I planned how to convert nebulae to 3D


For as long as I have captured images of celestial objects, I have always seen hem three-dimensionally in my head. The scientific information makes my inner visions much more accurate, and the 3-D technique I have developed enables me to share those beautiful visions with others.

How accurate my 3-D-visions are depending on how much information I have and how well I implement it.

The final 3-D-image is always an appraised simulation of reality based on known scientific facts, deduction, and some artistic creativity.

After I have collected all the necessary scientific information about my target, I start my 3-D conversion from stars. Usually there is a recognizable star cluster which is responsible for ionizing the nebula. We don’t need to know its absolute location since we know its relative location. Stars ionizing the nebula have to be very close to the nebula structure itself. I usually divide up the rest of the stars by their apparent brightness, which can then be used as an indicator of their distances, brighter being closer. If true star distances are available, I use them, but most of the time my rule of thumb is sufficient. By using a scientific estimate of the distance of the Milky Way object, I can locate the correct number of stars in front of it and behind it.

Emission nebulae are not lit up directly by starlight; they are usually way too large for that. Rather, stellar radiation ionizes elements within the gas cloud and the nebula itself is glowing light, the principle is very much the same as in fluorescent tubes. The thickness of the nebula can be estimated from its brightness, since the whole volume of gas is glowing, brighter means thicker.

By this means, forms of the nebula can be turned to a real 3-D shape. Nebulae are also more or less transparent, so we can see both sides of it at the same time, and this makes model-making a little easier since not much is hidden.

The local stellar wind, from the star cluster inside the nebula, shapes the nebula by blowing away the gas around the star cluster. The stellar wind usually forms a kind of cavity in the nebulosity. The same stellar wind also initiates the further collapse of the gas cloud and the birth of the second generation of stars in the nebula. The collapsing gas can resist the stellar wind and produces pillar like formations which must point to a cluster.

Ionized oxygen (O-III) glows with a bluish light, and since oxygen needs a lot of energy to ionize it, this can only be achieved relatively close to the star cluster in the nebula. I use this information to position the O-III area (the bluish glow) at the correct distance relative to the heart of the nebula.

Many other small indicators can be found by carefully studying the image itself. For example, if there is a dark nebula in the image, it must be located in front of the emission one, otherwise we couldn’t see it at all.

Using the known data in this way I build a kind of skeleton model of the nebula. Then the artistic part is mixed with the scientific and logical elements, and after that the rest is very much like creating a sculpture on a cosmic scale

3D-model without textures

Thursday, September 30, 2021

Filaments of Veil Nebula SNR

 I shot most of the lights for this image back in 2016, now I have added some new material to it and reprocessed the whole image. An older mapped color version can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2016/12/filaments-of-veil-nebula.html

Photo was shot with a Celestron Edge HD 11" telescope, Astrodon naarrow band filters and Apogee Alta U16 astro camera. New data is shot with a shorter focal length instrument, Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens, same camera and filters. Dim background emission is taken from a new material and added to this photo. 

Total exposure time is now 44 hours for the whole three frame mosaic and the resolution is 11.000 x 4000 pixels.

Filaments of central veil
Click for a large image (1100 x 2900 pixels)


Image is in visual palette from emission of an ionized elements, hydrogen (H-alpha), sulfur (S-II) and oxygen (O-III). Red=Hydrogen + 33% sulfur, Green=oxygen and Blue=oxygen + 33% hydrogen to compensate otherwise missing H-beta emission.

A closeup
Click for a large image




Orientation
Click for a large image


 

Unveiling the Veiled


Every single pixel in this 3d-animation is from the original 2D-image above. The model is based on on known scientific facts, deduction and some artistic creativity. The result is an appraised simulation of reality. Astronomical photos are showing objects as paintings on a canvas, totally flat. In reality, they are three dimensional forms floating in three dimensional space. The purpose of my 3d-experiments is to show that and Give an idea, how those distant objects might look in reality. More info about my 3D-technique at end of this blog post: https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2021/10/unveiling-veiled.html

NOTE. It looks like that the animation has less stars, than the original 2d-image. That's not true, stars is normal photo are getting projected to a same plane. In 3D-model stars are in volume and it only looks like, that there are less stars.