I always thought the Horsehead Nebula was just a dark spot until I saw a hydrogen-alpha shot

For years, I figured those famous pictures were just showing a black shape against red gas. Then I saw a deep image from the Mount Wilson Observatory using a 12-inch scope and a narrowband filter, and the whole structure just popped with faint, glowing detail around the edges. It's not just a hole, it's a whole complex cloud with its own faint light. Anyone else have a favorite target that looks totally different through special filters?

3 comments

3 Comments

gray79216d ago

Totally. @oscar_ellis gets it, filters change everything.

casey1616d ago

My old 8-inch Dob showed me the Veil Nebula for the first time with a filter. It was just a faint smudge before that.

oscar_ellis16d agoMost Upvoted

My first time seeing Orion through an OIII filter was a real "wait, I've been missing all that?" moment.