{"id":406,"date":"2026-04-01T02:48:47","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T02:48:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cosmosimager.com\/staging\/3153\/?page_id=406"},"modified":"2026-04-01T02:48:49","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T02:48:49","slug":"ngc281-the-pacman-nebula","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/cosmosimager.com\/staging\/3153\/ngc281-the-pacman-nebula\/","title":{"rendered":"NGC281 – The Pacman Nebula"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

NGC 281, commonly known as the Pacman Nebula<\/em>, is an emission nebula located in the constellation Cassiopeia at an approximate distance of 9,500 light-years. It is an active star-forming region associated with the open cluster IC 1590, whose young, massive stars emit intense ultraviolet radiation that ionizes the surrounding hydrogen gas, producing the characteristic red emission seen throughout the nebula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The structure of NGC 281 is shaped by a combination of stellar winds, radiation pressure, and embedded dark molecular clouds. Dense regions of dust and gas resist ionization, forming prominent dark lanes and globules that appear silhouetted against the bright emission background. These features are sites of ongoing star formation, where gravitational collapse is occurring within shielded regions of the nebula. The interplay between ionized gas and cold dust creates a complex morphology of cavities, ridges, and filamentary structures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This image was created using a combination of narrowband (SII, H-alpha, OIII) and broadband RGB data acquired from Arnold, CA. The data were collected from October 28, 2021 through November 24, 2021, with a total integration time of 62 hours. The processing blends SHO narrowband data to emphasize ionization structure and chemical composition, while RGB data preserves natural star color and enhances contrast between the bright emission regions and the embedded dark clouds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NGC 281, commonly known as the Pacman Nebula, is an emission nebula located in the constellation Cassiopeia at an approximate distance of 9,500 light-years. It is an active star-forming region associated with the open cluster IC 1590, whose young, massive stars emit intense ultraviolet radiation that ionizes the surrounding hydrogen gas, producing the characteristic red […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-406","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nNGC281 - The Pacman Nebula - William D Brown Astrophotography<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cosmosimager.com\/staging\/3153\/ngc281-the-pacman-nebula\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NGC281 - The Pacman Nebula - William D Brown Astrophotography\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"NGC 281, commonly known as the Pacman Nebula, is an emission nebula located in the constellation Cassiopeia at an approximate distance of 9,500 light-years. 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