Emission Nebula IC 2177 in the constellation Monoceros

IC 2177 is the center of a large H-II star forming region mixed with blue reflection nebulae. The nebula is excited to glow by the young B0 star HD 53367. HD 53367 is 20 times more massive than our Sun and has a secondary with 5 solar masses orbiting the main star in a highly elliptical orbit.

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Date:12.-14.04.2023
Optics: Planewave CDK 12.5 with Televue 0.8x reducer
Aperture: 318 mm
Focal Length: 2030 mm
Camera: Alccd12
Exposure: 24 x 600 s
Location: Chamaeleon Observatory, Onjala Lodge, Namibia
Processing: PixInsight, Photoshop
Diameter:21 light years
Distance:3,600 light years
annotated image

image field in the sky