Sharpless 2-101 and the Eta Cygni Region

The Details
Object	Sharpless 2-101 and the Eta Cygni Region
Optics	Takahashi FCT-76 at f/4.5
Platform	Astro-Physics 1200 GTO
Camera	SBIG ST-10XME
Filters	Custom Scientific 3nm Hydrogen-Alpha
Date	18 July 2005
Location	Mount Wilson Observatory - Mount Wilson, CA
Exposure	Ha 6 x 1800 sec 1x1 bin
Software	Maxim DL/CCD, Registar, CCDSharp, Photoshop CS
Orientation	Field of View: 02°28’ x 01°39’ centered on RA 20h06m10s DEC 35°19’49” (2000.0). North angle 31.08 °; east 90° CCW from north
Notes	This is truly a seldom imaged portion of the northern sky. At the time of this posting, an Internet search for images of this area of the heavens revealed a scant few offerings. Since there are so many more spectacular emission nebulae in the immediate vicinity, this area is likely passed over from consideration. TheSky software does not depict any nebulosity in this area and shows only open cluster NGC 6871. Yet, despite these facts, there are a number of objects to be discovered from a deep exposure here. Besides the already-mentioned open cluster NGC 6871, also visible in the field of view are the rather obscure open clusters Bi 1 and Bi 2 (Biurakan), emission nebula Sharpless 2-101, as well as dark nebulae Barnard 146 and 147. Click on this Eta Cygni Region Map link to see the locations of these deep sky objects.