SUNSET: 
0
Photographer:
Hal Heaton
Location of Photo:
Hakos Guest Ranch, Namibia
Date/Time of photo:
8-10 February 2026
Equipment:
Takahashi FSQ-106 f/5 refractor; ASA DDM60 Pro Mount; Mooravian C3-61000 CMOS camera (3.9 x 2.6 deg FOV, unguided, 2x2 binning, 300s exposures); Antlia R, G, B, Ha (2.5 nm) filters
Description:
The often-imaged central region of Orion features a stunning array of emission, reflection and dark nebulae and several bright stars, including the Belt stars Alnitak and Alnilam (center and upper left in this image that is oriented with north to the left and east down). Much of the dark structure in the bottom half of the frame, including the embedded Flame Nebula and NGC 2024 cluster to the left of the Horsehead Nebula are part of the dark Orion B Molecular Cloud. The Horsehead protrudes from (above in this image) the western edge of that cloud and is prominently backlit by the bright photodissociation region IC 434 whose red filamentary (H-alpha) emission is produced by the young star sigma Orionis just above it. The iconic Orion Nebula lies just off the upper right edge of the image.
