SUNSET: 
0
Photographer:
Antonio Ferretti & Attilio Bruzzone
Location of Photo:
Lanciano - Italy
Date/Time of photo:
12/25/2025
Equipment:
Telescope: Meade LX200 ACF 10 inch Mount: 10Micron GM2000 HPS II Camera: QHY268M Filter wheel: QHYCFW3 Filters: Astrodon I Series RGB Image scale: 0.26 arcsec/pixel
Description:
This deep RGB image shows NGC 1435, the Merope Reflection Nebula, surrounding Merope in the Pleiades star cluster, M45. Long exposures reveal vast interstellar dust clouds illuminated by the blue-white light of the cluster’s young hot stars. Around Merope, the dust forms delicate filamentary structures resembling soft brushstrokes across the sky. Close to the star lies IC 349, Barnard’s Merope Nebula, visible as a compact knot of nebulosity immersed in Merope’s glare. The image was acquired from Lanciano, Italy, during November and December 2025, with approximately 26 hours of RGB integration, preserving the faint dusty filaments and the natural colors of the field.
