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Writer's pictureTony Brown

Horsehead 2024

Updated: Jan 24

The Horsehead Nebula, scientifically cataloged as Barnard 33, is a dark nebula situated in the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex, approximately 1,500 light-years away from Earth. This enigmatic structure is part of the Orion Constellation, a region rich with celestial wonders.

Formation and Appearance: Named for its distinct silhouette resembling a horse's head, the Horsehead Nebula is a dark cloud of dust and gas that obscures the light emanating from the bright nebula IC 434 behind it. This captivating interplay of light and shadow creates an ethereal scene that has been a favorite among astronomers and stargazers alike.

The dark nebula's intricate details are brought to life through the process of absorption nebulae, where the cosmic dust absorbs the light from surrounding stars and emission nebulae, creating a stark contrast that defines its unique shape. The Horsehead Nebula spans about three light-years in size, making it a relatively small but visually striking feature in the cosmic panorama.


While taking the main Horsehead image I decided to break out my old star tracker and Canon DSLR with a simple (rather poorly) camera lens and take a wide field shot of the belt of orion. I took 305 15 second shots at ISO 800 for the below rough image. I was running at about 80mm focal length and with this and no guiding the exposure lengths need to be kept fairly short.


I shot this over three nights from my back garden here in Derbyshire. After weeks of dismal weather I managed to grab around 8 hours of data.

The Horsehead and Flame Nebula
Horsehead and Flame Nebula

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