IC 405 (Flaming Star Nebula) · ATR2600C · 2025-04-09

IC 405, the Flaming Star Nebula, is a mixed emission and reflection nebula in the constellation Auriga, surrounding the bright, irregular variable star AE Aurigae.

IC 405, the Flaming Star Nebula, is a mixed emission and reflection nebula in the constellation Auriga, surrounding the bright, irregular variable star AE Aurigae. AE Aurigae is a runaway star, thought to have been ejected from the Orion Nebula around two million years ago via a close encounter with other massive stars, and it is now passing through and illuminating this unrelated cloud of gas and dust. The nebula lies roughly 1,300-1,800 light-years away and spans about 5 light-years. Its name comes from the flame-like tendrils of glowing gas and dust visible in long exposures. Both emission (red, Hα-rich) and reflection (blue) components are present, making it a good target for combined broadband/narrowband processing. It sits near the similarly colorful IC 410 (Tadpoles Nebula), making the two a popular wide-field pairing.

[Source: Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IC_405]

Moon Phase	Waxing Gibbous
Camera	ToupTek ATR2600C
Optics	Skywatcher Esprit 120ED, 840 mm focal length, f/7 (120 mm aperture, APO triplet)
Date	2025-04-09
PixInsight Processing	Background Neutralization Automatic Background Extraction Dynamic Background Extraction Spectrophotometric Color Calibration NoiseXTerminator (AI denoise) (x2) Multiscale Adaptive Stretch