First light for the new Ioptron CEM 70G with Voyager!
Picked up a bargain on a near new CEM 70 – still under warranty, only driven on Sundays by a little old lady etc.
Sadly parted ways with the trusty big Tak NJP and hooked it all up to Voyager via a NUC and Pegasus ultimate powerbox.
The Big Tak TOA 130 rides very happily on top of the Ioptron, and guiding using the 121mm FL built-in guider was under .4 arc sec p/p! Astounding!

This classic target IC 2944 aka ‘the Running Chicken Nebula’, seemed a good one for a quick hit out, so 6 hrs Ha, 6 hrs O3, 4 hrs S2 and 40mins RG&B from the burbs here in light pollutionville, Melbourne- Australia.
Hope you like it, I’m looking forward to doing more imaging with this fine combination!

Is it just me or does it resemble a smokin’ Weber BBQ on wheels?

IC_2944 in Narrowband
IC_2944 in Narrowband

Capture Details

TelescopeTakahashi TOA 130 with TOA-35 Reducer
CameraQSI 6162 WSG8
MountIoptron CEM70G
FiltersChroma RG&B, 5nm Ha & S2, 3nm O3
Guiding CameraStarlight Xpress Lodestar X2
Integration time (Exposure)18.0 hrs
LocationBurwood, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
DateMarch, 2022

About this Nebula

To some, it looks like a giant chicken running across the sky. To others, it looks like a gaseous nebula where star formation occurs. Catalogued as IC 2944, the Running Chicken Nebula spans about 100 light-years and lies about 6,000 light-years away toward the constellation of the Centaur (Centaurus).   Collinder 249 is the star cluster embedded in the nebula’s glowing gas. Although difficult to discern here, several star-forming dark molecular clouds known as Bok Globules with distinct shapes can be found inside the nebula.

“Smoke ’em if you got ’em!”
- Generic