IRAS 09371+1212 Frosty Leo Nebula
LEO
RA
09 39 53
DEC
+11 58 52
MAG 11 V
Type Proto PN
This bright Proto PN can be seen in most telescopes I have seen reports of it being observed in 6" and 8" scopes. It is a very unique object and was found by the IRAS survey as a very cold object in the far IR. It first appeared in the journals in 1985. In 1987 Forvelle found it to have H2O ice crystals in the nebula from the spectrum. He is the one who suggested the name Frosty Leo nebula for its being cold in far IR and for the H2O Ice crystals.
Hubble Image
Frost Leo Hubble.jpg
I have observed this peculiar nebula many times over the years with my old 25" and my 48" telescopes. I like to show it to people because its one of the few deep sky objects that show color well. It has a ruddy orange color to my eye that shows well. Be sure to use as high a power as the seeing will allow on this object to show its fine detail and color. It has a peanut shape in the eyepiece and a faint anse on each end on nights with good seeing. At low power it looks like a fuzzy elongated star to me. The images below look close to how it looks in the 48"and is close to the color that I see.
frost leo 1.jpg Frosty leo dss.jpg
Let me know if you see the color in this unique icy nebula and ,
"GIVE IT A GO AND LET US KNOW"
GOOD LUCK AND GREAT VIEWING!
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