Other Names: Pacman Nebula, NGC 281, IC 11, LBN 616, Ced 3
Optics: Borg Astrograph 101ED at f/4.1
Mount: Atlas EQG using The Sky6, EQMOD, & MaxPilote
Camera: QSI 583WS
Filters: Astrodon Gen II RGB, Ha 3nm
Exposure: 380 Mins (6.33 hours) [38 x 600s] 200 mins Ha, 60 mins each of RBG
Accessories: Auto guided with Borg 45ED and Orion Starshoot Auto Guider using Maxim DL
Location: Rodeo, NM
Date: November 14th, 2012
Notes: Image acquisition with Maxim DL Pro using MaxPilote automation.
Processing: Colour calibration settings for Maxim DL completed using eXcalibrator. Image calibration, align, and combine in Maxim DL Pro. Levels, curves, Noise Ninja, crop and resize in Photoshop. Ha RGB combine completed using Neil Fleming's method (Ha added in "lighten" blend to each channel - R 100%, G 15%, B 20%, then Ha added as Lum layer at 50% opacity, redo curves on each new layer). Second Noise Ninja completed on final image to boost contrast. (settings 2/2/16)
Calibrated w/25 Darks, 93 Bias, 100 Flats of each filter using light box, CCD temperature was -20C. Image was taken near the Arizona Sky Village near Portal, AZ.

High Res Version: http://astromarina.zenfolio.com/img/s8/v75/p1410219766-6.jpg
Ha Version: http://astromarina.zenfolio.com/p264248004/h540F6238#h540f6238
Original RGB Version: http://astromarina.zenfolio.com/p14536770/h540F6D44#h540f6d44

Often called NGC 281, this object is an H II region in the constellation of Cassiopeia and part of the Perseus Spiral Arm. This bright nebula located far below the galactic plane is also nicknamed the PacMan nebula by amateur astronomers. IC 1590, the star cluster at the heart of the nebula, is about 3.5 million years old. The core of the star cluster IC 1590 is the trapezium system HD 5005, which ionises Sh 2-184. This area also includes several Bok globules

The nebula was discovered in August 1883 by E. E. Barnard, who described it as "a large faint nebula, very diffuse." The multiple star HD 5005, also called , was discovered by S. W. Burnham. It consists of an 8th-magnitude primary with four companions at distances between 1.4 and 15.7 seconds of arc. There has been no appreciable change in this quintuple system since the first measurements were made in 1875.