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.
Click the image to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · hover to see it annotated · open full resolutionAnnotated image · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolutionSky location chart · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolution
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]
Annotated Image
The annotated version is shown above - click it to zoom. Open the annotated image at full resolution.
Sky Location
The chart above shows where this image sits on the night sky. The yellow outline is its field of view, with the picture itself drawn at its true orientation; north is up and east is left. Click the chart to zoom in, and use "open full resolution" for the full-size chart.
Image Details
| Moon Phase: | Waxing Crescent |
|---|---|
| Camera: | Seestar S30 Pro (4K Sony IMX585 sensor) |
| Optics: | 160 mm focal length, f/5.3, 30 mm aperture (APO quadruplet) |
| Date: | 2026-02-19 |
| Number of images: | 214 |
| Exposure per image: | 60 s |
| Total imaging time: | 3 h 34 min |
PixInsight Processing
- Drizzle Integration (x2)
- Fast Integration (x2)
- Background Neutralization
- Automatic Background Extraction
- Dynamic Background Extraction
- Spectrophotometric Color Calibration
- NoiseXTerminator (AI denoise)
- Multiscale Adaptive Stretch
Click the image to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · hover to see it annotated · open full resolutionAnnotated image · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolutionSky location chart · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolution
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]
Annotated Image
The annotated version is shown above - click it to zoom. Open the annotated image at full resolution.
Sky Location
The chart above shows where this image sits on the night sky. The yellow outline is its field of view, with the picture itself drawn at its true orientation; north is up and east is left. Click the chart to zoom in, and use "open full resolution" for the full-size chart.
Image Details
| Moon Phase: | Waxing Crescent |
|---|---|
| Camera: | Seestar S30 Pro (4K Sony IMX585 sensor) |
| Optics: | 160 mm focal length, f/5.3, 30 mm aperture (APO quadruplet) |
| Date: | 2026-02-19 |
| Number of images: | 214 |
| Exposure per image: | 60 s |
| Total imaging time: | 3 h 34 min |
PixInsight Processing
- Drizzle Integration (x2)
- Fast Integration (x2)
- Background Neutralization
- Automatic Background Extraction
- Dynamic Background Extraction
- Spectrophotometric Color Calibration
- NoiseXTerminator (AI denoise)
- StarXTerminator (star removal)
- Generalized Hyperbolic Stretch (x6)
- PixelMath
- Curves Transformation
Click the image to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · hover to see it annotated · open full resolutionAnnotated image · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolutionSky location chart · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolution
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]
Annotated Image
The annotated version is shown above - click it to zoom. Open the annotated image at full resolution.
Sky Location
The chart above shows where this image sits on the night sky. The yellow outline is its field of view, with the picture itself drawn at its true orientation; north is up and east is left. Click the chart to zoom in, and use "open full resolution" for the full-size chart.
Image Details
| Moon Phase: | Waxing Crescent |
|---|---|
| Camera: | Seestar S30 Pro (4K Sony IMX585 sensor) |
| Optics: | 160 mm focal length, f/5.3, 30 mm aperture (APO quadruplet) |
| Filter: | LP |
| Date: | 2026-02-19 |
| Number of images: | 140 |
| Exposure per image: | 10 s |
| Total imaging time: | 23 min |
PixInsight Processing
- Fast Integration
- Drizzle Integration
- Dynamic Crop
- BlurXTerminator (AI deconvolution)
- GraXpert (gradient removal)
- Spectrophotometric Color Calibration
- NoiseXTerminator (AI denoise) (x2)
- StarXTerminator (star removal)
- Generalized Hyperbolic Stretch (x7)
- Curves Transformation (x2)
- Multiscale Median Transform
- PixelMath
Click the image to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · hover to see it annotated · open full resolutionAnnotated image · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolutionSky location chart · click to zoom in (4 steps), then again for full view · open full resolution
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]
Annotated Image
The annotated version is shown above - click it to zoom. Open the annotated image at full resolution.
Sky Location
The chart above shows where this image sits on the night sky. The yellow outline is its field of view, with the picture itself drawn at its true orientation; north is up and east is left. Click the chart to zoom in, and use "open full resolution" for the full-size chart.
Image Details
| Moon Phase: | Waxing Crescent |
|---|---|
| Camera: | Seestar S30 Pro (4K Sony IMX585 sensor) |
| Optics: | 160 mm focal length, f/5.3, 30 mm aperture (APO quadruplet) |
| Filter: | LP |
| Date: | 2026-02-19 |
| Number of images: | 140 |
| Exposure per image: | 10 s |
| Total imaging time: | 23 min |
PixInsight Processing
- Fast Integration
- Drizzle Integration
- Dynamic Crop
- BlurXTerminator (AI deconvolution)
- GraXpert (gradient removal)
- Spectrophotometric Color Calibration
- NoiseXTerminator (AI denoise)
