Elephant Trunk (IC 1396)
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The Elephant Trunk Nebula is a striking and visually captivating region in space, known for its resemblance to the trunk of an elephant. It is part of a larger molecular cloud complex called IC 1396, located in the constellation Cepheus. The nebula is approximately 2,400 light-years away from Earth, making it a relatively nearby stellar nursery where new stars are born.
The Elephant Trunk Nebula gets its name from the prominent dark, curved filament that resembles an elephant’s trunk. This filament is a dense region of gas and dust, which is being shaped and sculpted by the powerful radiation and stellar winds from nearby young, hot stars.
The nebula is a region of active star formation, with young stars in various stages of development. The dense regions of the nebula, like the “”trunk”” itself, are areas where new stars and planetary systems are in the process of forming. The surrounding lighter areas are often illuminated by the radiation from these young stars.
The nebula primarily consists of hydrogen gas and dust. The dark, dense regions are where the gas and dust are thick enough to block the light from behind, creating dark patches. In contrast, the lighter areas glow brightly, often due to the ionization of gas by radiation from young, hot stars. This glowing gas is primarily hydrogen and is known as H II regions.
The Elephant Trunk Nebula lies within the larger IC 1396 complex, which spans a large area in the night sky, making it visible through telescopes. IC 1396 is one of the more studied star-forming regions due to its proximity and the interesting structures it contains.
The Elephant Trunk Nebula has been extensively studied through various wavelengths of light, including infrared, visible, and X-rays. Observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope and other observatories have revealed intricate details of the nebula’s structure, the star formation process, and the interaction between stellar winds and the surrounding gas.
| Object | Elephant Trunk (IC 1396) |
| Link | https://www.shetzers.com/elephant-trunk-ic-1396/ |
| Wiki Link | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant%27s_Trunk_Nebula |
| Hemisphere | Northern |
| Constellation | Cepheus |
| Other Names contained in image | IC 1396 |
| Imaging telescopes or lenses | Takahashi TOA-130NFB |
| Imaging cameras | QHY268M |
| Mounts | Software Bisque Paramount MYT |
| Focal reducers | None |
| Software | Software Bisque The Sky X, N.I.N.A., PHD Lab PHD2, Viking, PixInsight, Photoshop, Lightroom |
| Filters | Astrodon LRGB Gen2 E-Series Tru-Balance 36mm unmounted. Chroma Technology Narrowband 3nm Ha, SII, OIII – 36mm Unmounted |
| Accessories | Moonlite NightCrawler 35 focuser, Maxdome II, Digital Loggers Pro Switch, Sky Alert Weather Station, Pegagsus Ultimate Powerbox v2, QHY 7-slot filter wheel. |
| Guiding Telescope or Lenses | Orion 60mm Guide Scope |
| Guiding Camera | ZWO ASI290MM Mini |
| Imaging Dates | 6/30/23, 7/1/23, 7/2/34, 7/8/23, 7/9/23, 7/15/23, 10/19/23, 10/20/23, 10/22/23, 12/5/23 |
| Frames | Ha: 36×600″ (6h) Gain 56, High Gain Mode, Temp -10C, Bin 1×1 OII: 25×600″ (4.2h) Gain 56, High Gain Mode, Temp -10C, Bin 1×1 SIII: 32×600″ (5.3h) Gain 56, High Gain Mode, Temp -10C, Bin 1×1 Red: 11×180″ (0.6h) Gain 26, Photographic Mode, Temp -10C, Bin 1×1 Green: 17×180″ (0.9h) Gain 26, Photographic Mode, Temp -10C, Bin 1×1 Blue:7×180″ (0.4h) Gain 26, Photographic Mode, Temp -10C, Bin 1×1 |
| Integration | 17.4h |
| Darks | 50 |
| Flats | 20 per Filter |
| Flat Darks | 40 |
| Bortle Dark-Sky Scale: | 2 |
| RA center | 323.73259 |
| DEC center | 57.48298 |
| Pixel scale | 3.76 |
| Resolution | 6280 x 4210 |
| Locations | Sirus 3.5m Observatory, Carbondale Colorado |
| Data source | Backyard |
| Seeing | Average |
| Post Processing Techniques | PixInsight to Photoshop to Lightroom |
| Type | SHO with RGB stars |