ScienceDownEast | ScienceDownEast Astrophotography | Nebulae | IC-5146-Cocoon-Nebula | IC 5146 (Cocoon Nebula)
Click on the image to view it at full resolution, then click again for actual size.
The Cocoon Nebula (IC 5146) is a striking combination of emission, reflection, and dark nebulosity in the constellation Cygnus, sitting at the tip of a long dark dust lane (Barnard 168) that trails away from it across the sky. It surrounds and illuminates the young open cluster Collinder 470, whose stars are only about a million years old. Distance estimates vary by method: recent Gaia-based studies of its member stars suggest roughly 2,500-2,600 light-years, while older references commonly cite around 4,000 light-years; the nebula itself spans roughly 15 light-years. Photographically it offers strong contrast between a reddish emission core, delicate blue reflection haze around embedded stars, and the dark, star-obscuring dust that borders it, making it rewarding for both broadband color and Hα narrowband imaging, especially framed together with the trailing dark filaments of B168.
[Source: Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IC_5146]
Total image time was 45 minutes.
The Cocoon Nebula (IC 5146) is a striking combination of emission, reflection, and dark nebulosity in the constellation Cygnus, sitting at the tip of a long dark dust lane (Barnard 168) that trails away from it across the sky. It surrounds and illuminates the young open cluster Collinder 470, whose stars are only about a million years old. Distance estimates vary by method: recent Gaia-based studies of its member stars suggest roughly 2,500-2,600 light-years, while older references commonly cite around 4,000 light-years; the nebula itself spans roughly 15 light-years. Photographically it offers strong contrast between a reddish emission core, delicate blue reflection haze around embedded stars, and the dark, star-obscuring dust that borders it, making it rewarding for both broadband color and Hα narrowband imaging, especially framed together with the trailing dark filaments of B168.
[Source: Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IC_5146]
Total image time was 45 minutes.
| Moon Phase | Waning Gibbous | ||||
| Camera | ToupTek ATR2600C | ||||
| Optics | Skywatcher Esprit 120ED, 840 mm focal length, f/7 (120 mm aperture, APO triplet) | ||||
| Filter | Triad Quad | ||||
| Binning | 1x1 | ||||
| Date | 2025-10-10 | ||||
| PixInsight Processing |
|
