When to photograph NGC 6543 (Cat's Eye Nebula)
NGC 6543, the Cat's Eye Nebula, is a planetary nebula in Draco, 1′ across at magnitude 9. Also listed as C 6.
When to photograph it
From 45° N the best months are March, April, August, September and October, with up to 7.0 hours of astronomical darkness above 30° in April. It reaches 68° at its highest. It never sets from this latitude, so some imaging is possible all year.
From 35° S it never rises.
Framing
At 1′ it is small. Even 4000 mm of focal length leaves it filling less than a third of an APS-C frame, so it suits long focal lengths, small pixels and good seeing.
Filters and the moon
Planetary nebulae are bright in OIII and H-alpha and small, so narrowband works and the moon matters less. Short subs help with the bright core. The dark sky calendar shows which nights this month are moon-free where you are.
Plan it for tonight
Dates and times depend on your exact location. The imaging planner shows NGC 6543's altitude through tonight, its transit time and its distance from the moon. For sub length, use the exposure calculator.
Nearby targets
- NGC 7023 Iris Nebula 17.2° away
- NGC 6946 Fireworks Galaxy 18.3° away
- NGC 6826 Blinking Planetary 20.9° away
- NGC 5907 Splinter Galaxy 21.4° away
- NGC 7129 21.7° away
- M 102 Spindle Galaxy 22.8° away
Gear that suits NGC 6543
NGC 6543 is only 0.9′ across, so it stays small in any amateur telescope. The longest focal length gives it the most pixels. It shines in H-alpha and OIII, so a dual-band filter on a color camera cuts through light pollution and moonlight.
- Celestron C8 OTA 2032 mm f/10: fills 3% of an APS-C frame's short side View at High Point Scientific
- Optolong L-Ultimate 3 nm 3 nm dual-band, Ha, OIII, for color cameras View at High Point Scientific
- Antlia ALP-T 5 nm 5 nm dual-band, Ha, OIII, for color cameras View at High Point Scientific
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