DETAILS
Exposure: 24×300″ + 19×60″ + 19×15″ @ ISO 800
Telescope: Skywatcher Newton 8″ f5 with Baader MPCC
Filter: Hutech IDAS LPS 2″
Mount: Meade LXD-75 Autostar
Camera: Modded Canon 350D
Date: 20th December 2008
Location: El Montseny (Barcelona)
Comments: In this image I shot sets of exposures of different lenght to correctly resolve the core of M42, which is very bright and saturates rapidly in long exposures.

The Orion Nebula, also known as M42 or NGC 1976, at the left part of the image, is a diffuse nebula situated south of the belt of constellation Orion’s. It is one of the brightest nebulae and is visible to the naked eye in the night sky under moderately good conditions. M42 is located at a distance of about 1,344 light years and is the closest region of massive star formation to Earth. The M42 nebula is estimated to be 24 light years across.
The Running Man Nebula, NGC 1977, at the right part of the image, is a and emission plus reflection nebula. It appears blue because the blue light from the neighboring stars scatters more efficiently from nebula gas than does red light. The dark lanes are composed of mostly interstellar dust – fine needle-shaped carbon grains.
These Nebulae are part of a much larger nebula known as the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex. The Orion Molecular Cloud Complex extends throughout the constellation of Orion and includes Barnard’s Loop, the Horsehead Nebula, M43, M78 and the Flame Nebula.