IC 5146 (C19) - Cocoon Nebula
IC 5146 (also designated Caldwell 19) is a diffuse nebula in the constellation Cygnus. It has an apparent visual magnitude of 7.2 and its angular diameter is 12 arc-minutes. The Equinox 2000 coordinates are RA= 21h 53.5m, Dec= +47° 16´ which makes IC 5146 best seen during the autumn. The Caldwell Autumn Star Chart shows the position of all Caldwell objects visible during that season. As one of the more famous objects in the Caldwell Catalog, it is commonly known as the Cocoon Nebula.
The image above shows the uncropped view of IC 5146 through the Astro-Physics 130EDF APO Refractor (130mm, f/6, fl=780mm). A 2x enlargement of this image appears to the right.
IC 5146 as a cluster of 9.5 mag stars involved in a bright and dark nebula with a combined apparent magnitude of 7.2. When viewing IC 5146, dark nebula Barnard 168 (B168) is an inseparable part of the experience, forming a dark lane that surrounds the cluster and projects westward forming the appearance of a trail behind the Cocoon. The nebula is a stellar nursery where star-formation is taking place. Young stars are seen in both the emission nebula, where gas has been ionized by massive young stars, and in the infrared-dark molecular cloud that forms the "tail". (this description from Wikipedia)
For additional information on IC 5146, see the Caldwell Catalog as well as specific entry for IC 5146 in Wikipedia.Technical Details
- Object: IC 5146
- Other Names: Caldwell 19, Cocoon Nebula
- Object Type: diffuse nebula
- Object Data: Apparent Magnitude = 7.2, Angular Size = 15 arc-minutes
- Object Position (Equinox 2000): RA= 21h 53.5m, Dec= +47° 16´; Constellation = Cygnus
- Date: 2019 Oct 26
- Location: Bifrost Astronomical Observatory, Portal, AZ
- Telescope: Astro-Physics 130EDF APO Refractor (130mm, f/6, fl=780mm)
- Mount: Astro-Physics 1200GTO
- Camera: ZWO ASI183MC Pro
- Field of View: 58.2' x 38.8' at 0.63 arc-sec/pixel
- Exposure: 21 x 300 sec (= 1 hr 45 min), f/6, Unit Gain, Temp.=-15° C
- File Name: IC5146-2019Oct26-1a.jpg
- Processing (Deep Sky Stacker): using Lights, Darks and Flats
- Processing (Photoshop CC): Curves, Levels, Layer Masks, Vibrance, Noise Reduction
- Original Image Size: 5496 × 3672 pixels (20.2 MP); 18.3" x 12.3" @ 300 dpi
- Rights: Copyright 2019 by Fred Espenak. All Rights Reserved. See: Image Licensing.