This image captures the striking emission nebula commonly known as the Dragons of Ara, processed in the Hubble-inspired SHO palette. The final image is the result of five clear nights of imaging, combining data acquired through multiple narrowband filters to reveal the intricate structures of ionized hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen within the nebula.
The color composition was created using separate Hα, SII, and OIII emissions extracted from dual narrowband filters. An additional UV/IR-cut exposure was used exclusively to produce natural-looking stars.
Acquisition Details
Total integration: approximately 19 hours
Hα + OIII (SVBONY SV220 3nm): 7.5 hours
SII + OIII (SVBONY SV220 7nm): 11 hours
UV/IR-cut (stars only): 30 minutes
Equipment
SVBONY SV550 80mm apochromatic triplet refractor
1× Field Flattener
Touptek ATR533C cooled astronomy camera
SVBONY SV220 Dual Narrowband Hα/OIII (3nm)
SVBONY SV220 Dual Narrowband SII/OIII (7nm)
SVBONY UV/IR Cut filter
EXOS-2 equatorial mount with OnStep controller
Software
N.I.N.A.
PHD2 Guiding
PixInsight
Affinity Photo
This image demonstrates how modern dual narrowband filters, combined with careful processing, can produce detailed SHO representations of emission nebulae even with a one-shot color astronomy camera.