IC 1318 is an emission nebula in the Cygnus constellation, about 4,000 lightyears away. Its glow comes as a result of nearby stars releasing streams of charged particles known as stellar winds, which ionise the gasses, causing them to emit light.
Advertisement
IC 1318 is often known as the Gamma Cygni Nebula and can be seen around the star Sadr, although the nebula and the star are unassociated and Sadr is not the cause of the emission nebula's glow.
IC1318 - The region around Sadr in Cygnus by André van der Hoeven, Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht, The Netherlands. Equipment: TMB92SS, QSI583ws, Skywatcher NEQ6
IC 1318 is also sometimes known as the Butterfly Nebula, but this double-lobed cosmic cloud is not to be confused with NGC 6302, which is also known as the Butterfly and is a planetary nebula about 3,800 lightyears away in the constellation Scorpius.
Below is a series of images of IC 1318 captured by astrophotographers and BBC Sky at Night Magazine readers.
IC 1318a in Gamma Cygni Nebula by Mark Griffith, Swindon, Wiltshire, UK. Equipment: Skywatcher NEQ6 pro, Equinox 80mm refractor, Atik 383L+, motorised filter wheel, Astronomik Ha LRGB filter set.
IC 1318b & IC 1318C in Gamma Cygni Nebula by Mark Griffith, Swindon, Wiltshire, UK. Equipment: Skywatcher NEQ6 pro mount & Equinox 80mm refractor, Atik 383L+ camera, motorised filter wheel and Astronomik Ha LRGB filter set.
IC1318 Butterfly Nebula by Mark Griffith, Swindon, Wiltshire, UK. Equipment: Telescope service 8" Boren simon power newtonian, Skywatcher NEQ6 pro mount,Atik 383L+ camera, motorised filter wheel and Astronomik filters.
Gamma Cygni to Propeller Nebula by Simon Taylor, Amersham, UK. Equipment: Takahashi Epsilon-130D, SX H36 camera, Baader 7nm Ha filter, iOptron iEQ45 mount, SX IO, PHD2, PixInsight.
