Northern Sky Narrowband Survey
A survey of the northern sky, focusing on emission lines of HII (H-Alpha at 656.3nm), OIII (500.7nm), and SII (671.7nm and 673.0nm), but also collecting continuum data, started at the end of 2018. The entire northern hemisphere down to DEC=-16° is photographed.Early results from selected regions can be found in the wide field nebulae section. Any of these images show faint nebulae that haven't been cataloged before. A preliminary list of these discoveries can be found in a GitHub repository.
A first data release with a complete set of H-alpha and low-resolution continuum images (instruments 1-4, see below) is scheduled for the end of 2024.
Below are two tables. The first one describes the different instruments, and the second one lists how many of the instruments from the first table are active in which period.
| Instrument index | Emission line, Bandwidth / Passband / Filter | Field of view | Aperture | Resolution | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 656.3nm (H-alpha, HII), 3.5nm | 7.6°×5.8° | 5 cm | 9" (FWHM) | Panasonic MN34230 sensor, f=135mm lens |
| 2 | Bayer CFA + Light pollution filter | 15.5°×10.3° | 7 cm | 17" (FWHM) | Digital consumer photo camera, f=135mm lens |
| 3 | 656.3nm (H-alpha, HII), 3.5nm | 7.6°×5.8° | 6 cm | 9" (FWHM) | Panasonic MN34230 sensor, f=135mm lens |
| 4 | 656.3nm (H-alpha, HII), 35nm | 7.6°×5.8° | 5 cm | 9" (FWHM) | Panasonic MN34230 sensor, f=135mm lens, Used for exact continuum measurement (passband centered to emission line) in combination with narrow band filters. |
| 5a | 410nm to 550nm (SDSS G') | 6.8°×4.5° | 10 cm | 7" (FWHM) | Sony IMX455 sensor, f=300mm lens |
| 5b | 555nm to 650nm (SDSS R' + 400 to 650nm IR-cut) | 6.8°×4.5° | 10 cm | 7" (FWHM) | Sony IMX455 sensor, f=300mm lens |
| 5c | 695nm to 845nm (SDSS I') | 6.8°×4.5° | 10 cm | 7" (FWHM) | Sony IMX455 sensor, f=300mm lens |
| 6a | 505.7nm (OIII), 4nm | 10°×6.8° | 6 cm | 10" (FWHM) | Sony IMX571 sensor, f=135mm lens |
| 6b | 671.7nm and 673.0nm (SII), 4nm | 10°×6.8° | 6 cm | 10" (FWHM) | Sony IMX571 sensor, f=135mm lens |
| Instrument index: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5a | 5b | 5c | 6a | 6b |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2018 to Apr 2020 | 4 | 2 | |||||||
| Apr 2020 to Jul 2020 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||
| Jul 2020 to Jan 2022 | 2 | 3 | 1 | ||||||
| Since Jan 2022 to September 2022 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||
| September 2022 to December 2023 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||
| December 2022 to April 2023 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Since April 2023 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||
| Since January 2024 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
Images
Below are a few photos of the instruments. Click on the images for higher resolution versions.
