A plethora of open clusters are framed in this image. Large clusters like Ptolemy’s Cluster (M7) and The Butterfly Cluster (M6) seem to eclipse smaller ones like NGC 6416 and NGC 6425. The dark nebula between M7 and M6 is Barnard 283.
Date: September 11, 2010
Constellation: Scorpius
Location: Parque Nacional La Campana, Chile, S33.003 W71.127, elevation: 370 metres.
Optics: Borg 77EDII at f/4.3 on Takahashi EM-11 Mount
Camera: Hutech modified Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Exposure: 31 RAW light frames of 90 seconds, ISO 800
Processing: Light frames calibrated with dark frames and flat frames in ImagesPlus. Light frames combined using MinMax Excluded.