APOD: 2022 November 24 - Lynds Dark Nebula 1251

Good morning, Rallypoint, and welcome to the November 24th Thanksgiving Day edition of Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD): "Lynds Dark Nebula 1251." A 'dark nebula' or absorption nebula is a type of interstellar cloud that is so dense that it obscures visible light. You may recall that an emission nebula emits light, and a reflection nebula reflects light. In studying dark nebulae, scientists have detected atomic helium and nitrogen, as well as the compounds carbon monoxide, cyanide, ammonia, formaldehyde, and the molecular ion diazenylium (an ammonia molecule missing a hydrogen atom). Astronomer Beverly Lynds published the catalog of dark nebulae in 1962. Hence Lynds Dark Nebula (LDN) 1251.

We find LDN 1251 in the northern constellation of Cepheus. The notes available for today's APOD suggest this is a composite image of 33 frames, each with an exposure time of 600 seconds (10 minutes). Here's the rest of the gear:

Imaging Telescope: Tecnosky APO SLD 130/900 OWL
Imaging Cameras: Omegon veTEC 571 C
Mounts: iOptron CEM120
Filters: Optolong UV/IR cut 2"
Guiding Telescope: TS-Optics TSL80D 80mm Deluxe Guiding/Finder Scope
Guiding Camera: ZWO ASI224MC

Something tells me there's alot of money involved here. But the astrophotographer does know how to put it to work. Happy Thanksgiving.