Trapezium (Theta Orionis) in the Orion Nebula

Posted 2006 October 09; updated 2006 Decebmer 04 @ 16:00

© 2006 G. Liakos

Near the centre of the Orion Nebula lie four bright stars in a squarish pattern – the Trapezium – beautifully shown in George's close-up. Long-exposure photos often overexpose this part of the nebula in order to show detail in the outer fainter portions. The Trapezium, also known as Theta Orionis, can be seen as four closely-spaced stars in binoculars; a 6-inch telescope will reveal at least six components of this multiple star system.

© 2006 G. Liakos

After a break in the rain, on November 29, with a bright Moon in the sky, George took 64 ten-second images (ISO 1600) of the Trapezium and stacked them in Photoshop. "The result is a markedly better image than my first attempt", he writes.

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Keywords: Astronomy, deepsky observing, deep sky observing, astrophotography, George Liakos

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