NGC 1499 – California Nebula in Perseus and the O7 type star Menkib (click on the image for a much larger version)
The California Nebula (NGC 1499) is an emission nebula in Perseus. The fluorescence is due to excitation of Hα from the nearby prodigiously energetic O7 star Xi Persei known also as Menkib to the right of the nebula. Jim Kaler has this description of Xi Persei. This image was acquired 12-21-2024 on an Astro-Tech AT65EDQ ED refractor with a neodymium broadband skyglow filter. 67 x 300 second images were stacked and processed in Siril.