NGC 2070

Located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, this is the largest and most luminous HII region in the Local Group. Were it as close as the Orion Nebula, it would cast shadows on Earth. The central cluster R136 contains some of the most massive stars known. Only visible from the southern hemisphere.

Emission nebula

NGC 2070

NGC 2070 · Dorado
These photons are ~160,000 years old
⧉ 3 versions of this capture — pick one to see its image and log
Date
18/08/2024
Location
Siding Spring Observatory (remote)
Integration
3m (H 1, O 1, S 1 x 60s)
Software
PythonastropyastroalignSEPscikit-imagephotutilsAstrometry.net
Notes
Everything the measurements justify and nothing they do not. The background fit is constrained so it cannot subtract the nebula itself; the deepest channel is sharpened with star-protected deconvolution; a second tone curve recovers the bright core without clipping the faint outer structure; and noise reduction is kept away from compact sources. Plate-solved against Gaia DR3, so scale and orientation are measured rather than assumed.
Moon
🌔Waxing gibbous, 98% lit
TelescopeiTelescope T8
Captured remotely from · Australia
Bortle 2 · truly dark
Siding Spring Observatory · view on OpenStreetMap ↗ · Place data © GeoNames (CC BY)

Frequently asked questions

What kind of object is NGC 2070?
NGC 2070 is an emission nebula.
Which constellation is NGC 2070 in?
NGC 2070 lies in the constellation Dorado.
How far away is NGC 2070?
The light in this image left NGC 2070 roughly ~160,000 years ago, so that is how far back in time you are seeing it.
What are the coordinates of NGC 2070?
NGC 2070 sits at right ascension 05h 38m 38s and declination −69° 05′ 42″ (J2000).
When is the best time to photograph NGC 2070?
NGC 2070 never climbs above the horizon from Siding Spring Observatory (31°S), so it has to be imaged from further north.
What equipment was used to photograph NGC 2070?
This image of NGC 2070 was captured with iTelescope T8.
How much exposure time went into this image?
This image of NGC 2070 represents 3m (H 1, O 1, S 1 x 60s) of total integration time.

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