The Soul Nebula (Westerhout 5) is an emission nebula located in the constellation Cassiopeia. It forms a famous pair known as the Heart and Soul with the neighbouring Heart Nebula (IC 1805). The Soul Nebula is sometimes also known as the Embryo Nebula or IC 1848, which is a designation used for the open star cluster embedded within the nebula.

The Heart and Soul Nebulae complex spans an area about 300 light years across and is a vast star-forming region illuminated by the light of the young stars surrounded by star-forming clouds of dust and gas. The two large clouds are separated by only 2.5 degrees and physically connected by a bridge of gas. The stars in the region are less than a few million years old and are only beginning their life. For comparison, our Sun has been around for almost 5 billion years.

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21.5 hours of exposure from Central London

H-alpha: 12.5 hours of 3mins subs

O-III: 3 hours of 3mins subs

S-II: 6 hours of 3mins subs

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Telescope: Skywatcher Quattro 8" F/4 

Mount: Skywatcher AZ-EQ 6 

Camera: QHYCCD 294M

Filters: Antlia 3.5nm Ha, 3.5nm SII, 3nm OIII

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Processed in Pixinsight and Photoshop

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Higher Resolution can be found here: https://flic.kr/p/2nYJ17S