NGC2359 (popularly called Thor's Helmet) is an emission nebula about 12,000 light years from Earth in the constellation Canis Major. It has an overall bubble shape, with additional complex structures forming the "horns" of the helmet. The nebula is approximately 30 light years across.
The central star is a Wolf-Rayet star – an extremely hot star believed to be close to exploding as a supernova.
| Exposure |
• 8¼ hours (49 X 10 minutes) @ -20°C • Dusk flats • Camera position angle: 0° |
| Processing |
• With PixInsight: ☞ Calibrate, star-align, and integrate subframes ☞ Background neutralization ☞ Histogram transformation ☞ Shrink stars • Final tweaking in Photoshop CS6 |
| Date and Location |
• January 26, 2020 & January 9, 2021 • Louisa County, Virginia, USA |
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Equipment |
• TMB-130SS APO refractor @ f/7 on an A-P 1200 mount • ZWO ASI-1600MC Pro color camera • Guided with an ST-402 camera on a 60mm f/5 scope • Imaging and autoguiding with MaxIm DL 6.20 • Automated image acquisition with ACP Observatory Control |
Updated May 23, 2023