Ghost of Cassiopeia

IC59 and IC63 - the ghost cassiopeia at 550 light years away from us!

The blue-giant star pictured on the top right, Gamma Cassiopeia, packs the energy of 34,000 Suns! It's so bright that its light illuminates the nearby nebula IC 63, seen here as the glowing cloud of hydrogen gas. This makes IC 63 an unusual combination of both emission and reflection nebula. This image doesnot show the reflection part. I will be adding that data later this year!