LDN 43, the Cosmic Bat nebula

Constellation: Ophiuchus

LDN 43, also known as the Cosmic Bat nebula is a dark nebula obscuring LBN 7, a bright nebula that lies behind it, in the constellation of Ophiuchus. LBN 7 is the illuminated dust surrounding the dark LBN 43 nebula. The small galaxy seen below LDN 43 is LEDA 3868080. This galaxy is located 400 million light years away. It is slightly larger than our Milky Way, at about 130,000 light years in diameter. Link to interactive sky chart.

Dates:

Data acquired remotely in May and July 2023 using Martin Pugh’s equipment.

His telescope is located in Australia (Observatory: Heaven’s second mirror, NSW).

Colour palette is LRGB.

Telescope & Mount:

SharpStar 140mm (F4.8) on a Software Bisque Paramount ME II mount.

Imaging:

Camera: SBIG STXL16200, FW8G

Data:
Astrodon Blue: 55x300s
Astrodon Green: 55x300s
Astrodon Red: 55x300s
Astrodon Lum: 68x300s

Total integration time: 19h 25′