NGC 2359 Thor's Helmet
About this object
NGC 2359, also known as Thor's Helmet is a fairly bright emission nebula in the constellation Canis Major. The nebula is thought to be approx 15,000 light years distant. Near the center of the greenish/ blue bubble of gas is a extremely hot star. This star is cataloged as a Wolf Rayet star. Its thought that the complex shape of the nebula is caused by the stellar winds from this star. The above image is a false color image taken through narrow band filters. Red was mapped to SII, Green to Ha, and Blue to OIII.
NGC 2359, also known as Thor's Helmet is a fairly bright emission nebula in the constellation Canis Major. The nebula is thought to be approx 15,000 light years distant. Near the center of the greenish/ blue bubble of gas is a extremely hot star. This star is cataloged as a Wolf Rayet star. Its thought that the complex shape of the nebula is caused by the stellar winds from this star. The above image is a false color image taken through narrow band filters. Red was mapped to SII, Green to Ha, and Blue to OIII.
Image Details
- Optics : Stellarvue SV80ST2
- Mount: Mountain Instruments MI-250
- Camera: QSI 583
- Filters: Astrodon 31mm 3nm Ha, SII, OIII filters
- Exposure: Ha: 240min SII: 240min, OIII: 240min
- Camera/Mount Control: Maxim DL 4.56, CCD Commander
- Location: Stark Bayou Observatory, Ocean Springs, MS
- Date: Nov 2010
