vvan den Bergh 152 / Cedarblad 201; Cepheus
Astro Systeme Austria N12 f/3.5 astrograph
KAI-11000M; SBIG STL
Total Exposure 7 Hours; LRGB 240:60:60:60 minutes; unbinned
June 2007; Inkom, ID
Comments: Described as a "dusty curtain" or "ghostly apparition", mysterious reflection nebula vdB 152 really is very faint. It lies about 1400 light-years away, along the northern Milky Way in the royal constellation Cepheus. Near the edge of a large molecular cloud, pockets of cosmic dust in the region block light from background stars or scatter light from the embedded bright star (top) giving parts of the nebula a characteristic blue color. Ultraviolet light from the star is also thought to cause a dim reddish luminescence in the nebular dust. Though stars do form in molecular clouds, this star seems to have only accidentally wandered into the area, as its measured velocity through interstellar space is very different from the cloud's velocity (comment source: NASA APOD).
A closer view of the the central nebula complex is here.
