NGC 2371 & 2372 (Gemini)
Fig. 1 - Cosmic candy: NGC 2371-2 in Gemini, photographed with a 16-inch f/4.5 Dob on an equatorial platform.
| Object name: | Constellation: | Coordinates: | Apparent size: | Visual brightness: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NGC 2371-2 | Gemini | 07h26m / +29°29' | 1.03' x 1.03' | 11.2 mag |
The planetary nebula NGC 2371-2 (also called Peanut Nebula, Gemini Nebula, or Candy Nebula) in the constellation Gemini. NGC 2371-2 is one of only a few planetary nebulae to carry not one, but two, entries in the New General Catalogue. That's due to the fact that the brightest part of the nebula has an obvious bipolar appearance: Two lobes form an irregular and patchy oval, the western part is NGC 2371, the eastern part is NGC 2372. This is surmounted by symmetrically placed opposing jets, almost looking like "polar caps", from the 15 mag central star. NGC 2371-2 is 4,400 light-years from Earth and was discovered by William Herschel in 1785 (source: Wikipedia).
Exposure time: 2h 32min (51x approx. 3min) at ISO 800, taken on January 8 / 9, 2021. Processing with DeepSkyStacker and Photoshop. No calibration frames were taken.
Equipment: Canon EOS 450D Baader modified camera, TeleVue Universal Paracorr coma corrector, 16" f/4.5 "Ninja" dobsonian telescope riding on a dual-axis Tom Osypowski equatorial platform, Lacerta MGEN autoguider, Lacerta off axis system.
Field of view comparison: image of the moon with the same equipment.
Fig. 2 - Search chart for NGC 2371-2. Copyright 2025 'The Mag-7 Star Atlas Project', www.siaris.net.