LDN 673 is a striking dark nebula located in the constellation Aquila, approximately 600 light-years away from Earth. This region of space is rich with dense molecular clouds, where interstellar dust blocks the light from the stars behind it, creating a dark silhouette against the backdrop of the Milky Way. LDN 673 is part of a larger complex known as the Aquila Rift, an area of intense star formation activity.

In this image, the intricate patterns of the dark nebula are beautifully contrasted with the dense star field surrounding it. The thick clouds of dust and gas are where new stars are born, and their dark, winding shapes create a mesmerizing view. Despite the challenging nature of imaging such faint objects, this photograph captures the mysterious beauty of LDN 673, offering a glimpse into the dynamic processes that govern star formation in our galaxy.

Image Description and Details :

LDN 673 (lower-left) is a swirling Dark Nebula located within the main band of the Milky Way in Aquila which takes on a tentacle-like appearance. Including the dark nebula LDN 684 in the upper-right, the entire complex appears much like the silhouette of a Reaper from the Mass Effect series. I shot this across 6 nights under the Bortle 1 skies of the 2021 Okie-Tex Star Party totaling 6 hours Luminance (full visible light spectrum for contrast) and 2.3 hours exposure for each Red, Green, and Blue channels. 350mm Focal Length Refractor, ASI1600MM-P, APT for capture, Pixinsight for processing

Copyright: Brent Newton

Image Description and Details :

LDN 673 (Lynds’ Dark Nebula 673) is a highly fractured and very dense dark cloud complex about 600 light-years from Earth in the constellation Aquila. It is located near the center of the Aquila Rift, a great mass of dark molecular clouds along the summer Milky Way through the constellations Aquila, Serpens, and eastern Ophiuchus. This molecular cloud make the distant stars appear reddish, while the very dense LDN 673 nebula completely blocks the starlight.

In silhouette against the Milky Way’s faint starlight, LDN 673’s dusty molecular clouds likely contain raw material to form hundreds of thousands of stars. Visible indications of energetic outflows associated with young stars include the small red tinted nebulosity RNO 109 (GN 19.18.0) and several Herbig-Haro objects, like HH 32 near the young variable T-Tauri star V1352 (AS 353). These objects are signs of active star formation.

Telescope: ASA 10" Astrograph
Mount: ASA DDM60
Camera: Moravian G3-16200

4-panel mosaic with a total exposure time of 20h 30min


Copyright: Thomas Henne