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Harel Boren | all galleries >> Galleries >> Kalahari Southen Skies > Eta Carina Nebula NGC 3372
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June 27, 2011 Harel Boren

Eta Carina Nebula NGC 3372

Tivoli Farm, Namibia

SBIG ST8300M, Astrodon filters: RGB E-Series GenII
HaR(Ha)GB Total 1:35 hours = Ha 65 min. [13x5 min.] + R,G,B 2x5 min. each
Boren-Simon 2.8-8 CF (Carbon Fiber) OTA - http://www.powernewts.com
AP GTO1200 mount, guided w/PHD and EQMOD

The Carina Nebula (also known as the Great Nebula in Carina, the Eta Carina Nebula, or NGC 3372) is a large bright nebula that surrounds several open clusters of stars. Eta Carinae and HD 93129A, two of the most massive and luminous stars in our Milky Way galaxy, are among them. The nebula lies at an estimated distance between 6,500 and 10,000 light years from Earth. It appears in the constellation of Carina, and is located in the Carina–Sagittarius Arm. The nebula contains multiple O-type stars.

The nebula is one of the largest diffuse nebulae in our skies. Although it is some four times as large and even brighter than the famous Orion Nebula, the Carina Nebula is much less well known, due to its location far in the Southern Hemisphere. It was discovered by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1751–52 from the Cape of Good Hope.

Within the large bright nebula is a much smaller feature, immediately surrounding Eta Carinae itself. This small nebula is known as the Homunculus Nebula (from the Latin meaning Little Man), and is believed to have been ejected in an enormous outburst in 1841 which briefly made Eta Carinae the second-brightest star in the sky. (Ref. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eta_Carinae_Nebula)

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