NGC 281 is a HII region located about 10 000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cassiopeia. With a diameter of about 100 light-years, it is part of the Perseus Arm. It includes or is close to the open cluster IC 1590, the double star HD 5005 and several Bok globules. It is visible through an amateur telescope in areas where the night sky is sufficiently dark. It is sometimes unofficially called the Pacman Nebula because of its coincidental resemblance to the eponymous hero of the arcade game Pac-Man.
This emission nebula was discovered by the American astronomer Edward Barnard in 1881.
Photo taken in Normandy France from 05/08 to 17/12/22.