A superb image of IC 410 The Tadpole Nebula (left) and IC 405 The Flaming Star Nebula (right) by member Neil Webster taken on the 3rd Jan 2025.
”IC 410 is a cosmic cloud that looks like tadpoles swimming through the cosmos.
IC 410 is located 12,000 lightyears from Earth in the Auriga constellation, and is nicknamed the Tadpole Nebula because of the tadpole-shaped clouds of dark dust that appear to be swimming towards the centre. The Tadpole Nebula is a region of ionised hydrogen gas spanning over 100 lightyears across that’s carved and sculpted by streams of charged particles called stellar winds emanating from open star cluster NGC 1893. NGC 1893 is about 4 million years old: the blink of an eye in cosmic terms. The ‘tadpoles’ that give the nebula its nickname are dense streams of dust and gas about 10 lightyears long that may well be sites of star formation.” Ref: https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/astrophotography/nebulae/tadpole-nebula-ic-410
located near the emission nebula IC 410, is IC 405 (also known as the Flaming Star Nebula, SH 2-229, or Caldwell 31). IC 405 is an emission and reflection nebula that surrounds the bluish, irregular variable star AE Aurigae.
Neil acquired his image using a WO GT71 Apo, EQ6 R, ZWO ASI 294MC Pro Optolong L Enhance filter, Astro Essentials 50mm guide scope, and a ZWO ASI 290MM guide camera.
Processed using APT, PHD, Nebulosity and Photoshop.
58 x 240s Subs, 45 x 0.015s Flats/Bias.
Note: Neil suffered a power cut just before taking the Darks so noise reduction was applied liberally.
Check out Neil’s flickr page at https://www.flickr.com/photos/137388222@N05/with/54245664968/ to see a higher resolution image.
Tags: deep sky, IC 405, IC 410, Tadpole nebula, The Flaming Star Nebula