More than astrophotography, an astronomical exploration.
A Deep-Sky Dream - The Pazmino's Cluster
David Cruz · Astromidnight
In Camelopardalis, a small group of blue stars shines in front of the nebula Sh2-202, wrapped in a faint veil of dust. All around, dark lanes from the Lynds catalogue trace a V around the cluster.
| Catalogue | Stock, 1958 · Stock 23 · Pazmino's Cluster |
| Type | Open cluster |
| Distance | ≈ 2,000 light-years |
| Field | 83.1′ × 55.2′ |
| Scale | 0.54″ / pixel |
| Orientation | 41° · north-east up |
| RA (centre) | 03h 16m 48s |
| DEC (centre) | +60° 01′ 20″ |
| Constellation | Camelopardalis |
| Objects in field | Stock 23 · Sh2-202 · 7 LDN · HBC 336 · V803 Cas |
Distance and age of Stock 23 from Gaia data (Pang et al. 2022; Hunt & Reffert 2024); the age varies between studies, from 70 to 110 million years. The cluster marker uses the position from Hunt & Reffert (2024), which matches the bright group; the centre of the Gaia members (Cantat-Gaudin et al. 2020) lies further north. The distances to the LDN dark clouds are not published one by one: the clouds in this area lie in layers at 150 to 300 pc and at about 900 pc. Distances to HBC 336 and HD 20134 calculated from Gaia parallax (SIMBAD). No real width, because the cluster, the nebula and the dust are at different distances. Positions of the nebulae taken from the AstroBin astrometric solution and approximate.
18 h 20 min of light
Each tick is one exposure. 250 in total, with the camera at −10 °C and gain 100. Calibrated with 30 darks, 30 flats and 30 bias. The Moon stayed below 90 % illumination throughout.
Carbon Newton 10' f/4
ZWO ASI2600MC Pro
Sky-Watcher CQ350 Pro
Askar M54 OAG · ZWO ASI120MM Mini
TS-Optics Maxfield .95X Coma Corrector
Player One Anti-Halo Pro Dual-Band Ha+OIII Filter 2"
Adobe Photoshop · Pleiades Astrophoto PixInsight · Stefan Berg Nighttime Imaging 'N' Astronomy (N.I.N.A. / NINA)
São Pedro da Gafanhoeira, Évora · 358 m
Bortle 3