vdB14
Reflection Nebula in Camelopardalis
About
A faint bluish reflection nebula in Camelopardalis, glowing with the light of the 4th-magnitude star B Camelopardalis. One imager finds it in the autumn Milky Way's northern fringe, in the gap separating Cassiopeia from Perseus, and calls it almost unnamed. Cam OB1, a region of star formation, surrounds it.
Imaging tips
- Framing runs 1050–1760 mm on APS-C. Its neighbour vdB15 lies about 64′ to the south, so showing both calls for a wider field.
- One imager framed vdB14 and vdB15 together at 530 mm on a full-frame DSLR, with a light-pollution suppression filter and four 4-minute exposures.
- Another imager collected 19 hours over five nights on a 91 mm refractor. A reflection nebula needs broadband light, so plan many hours rather than a few.
- In a stretched image the two nebulae appear to join into one huge cloud, so a wide field with deep data shows more than either alone.
- Best in October and November; it peaks near 80° from 50°N.
Facts
- Size
- 23′
- Magnitude
- —
- Coordinates
- RA 3h 29.0m, Dec +59° 56′
- Framing, APS-C
- 1050–1760 mm
- Framing, full frame
- 1610–2690 mm
- Best months
- Oct, Nov
- Peak altitude
- 80° from 50°N, 65° from 35°N