The Boogeyman Nebula: LDN 1622 in Orion | Schulman Telescope

The Boogeyman Nebula: LDN 1622 in Orion | Schulman Telescope

To some, this dark shape looks like a mythical boogeyman—a mythical creature used by adults to frighten children into good behavior. Scientifically, Lynds' Dark Nebula (LDN) 1622 appears against a faint background of glowing hydrogen gas only visible in long telescopic exposures of the region. LDN 1622 lies near the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy, close in the sky to Barnard's Loop, a large cloud surrounding the rich complex of emission nebulae found in the Belt and Sword of Orion.

 LDN 1622 is a dark nebula, so called because these dense interstellar clouds of gas and dust blot out light from background objects, appearing as ink-dark clouds against a backdrop of stars. This enigmatic cosmic cloud is 1,300 light-years from Earth in the nearby Orion complex, a star-forming region thronging with young stars and other dark nebulae.

Technical Details

Optics: Schulman 32-inch RCOS Telescope

Camera: SBIG STX16803

Image Credit & Copyright: Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona

Image Date: Dec. 1, 2011

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