
LDN 1610 (B168 – Black Cigar)
- LDN 1610 is a long, filamentary dark molecular cloud in Cygnus, about 15 light‑years long, seen in silhouette against the bright Milky Way.
o - It’s part of the same star‑forming complex that includes the Cocoon Nebula (IC 5146).
o - Also know as B168 is stretched into a long, straight dust lane ~ hence the nickname Black Cigar.
o - These are the Lynds Dark Nebulae commonly associated with the Cocoon / B168 filament in mapping (see annotated):
– LDN 1020 (part of the below far elongated lane.)
– LDN 1030 (part of the below elongated lane.)
– LDN 1031 (part of the below elongated lane.)
– LDN 1035 (western extension of the filament.)
– LDN 1040 (denser knot.)
– LDN 1042 (segment approaching IC 5146.)
– LDN 1045 (small high‑opacity patch embedded in the lane.)
- Object Name
LDN 1610
- Object Type
Dark Nebula
- Constellation
Cygnus
- Magnitude
n/a
- Distance
3,250 light-years
- Annotated

oooo
Equipment
Telescope:
Mount:
Accessory:
Celestron 8-inch Edge HD
Sky-Watcher AZ-EQ6 GT
ZWO ASIair Plus / PixInsight
Camera:
Guiding:
Filter:
ZWO ASI585MC Pro cooling
ZWO ASI1200MM
2″ Optolong eNchance
Bortle Scale: Saxmundham, Suffolk (Bortle 4.2)
oooo
Integration
- Date:
- Moonlit:
- Total:
oooo
oooo
Constellation :- Cygnus (The Swan)
(Find the Lynds Dark Nebulae commonly associated with the Cocoon Nebula ~ IC 5146.)

Object :-
oooo
Object :-
Other name :-
o
Type :–
Magnitude :–
Distance :-
Constellation :-
Right Ascension :-
Declination :-
oooo
oooo
IC 5146
Cocoon Nebula / C19 / Sh2-125 / Cr470
Barnard 168 (dark lane)
Emission & reflection Nebulae
+9.3
3,250 light years / 15 light years across
Cyg (Cygnus / The Swan)
21h 53m 29s
+47°14′ 46″
Enlarge on click the map.

(Click the map above for a large view.)
| Abbreviation: Cyg |
| English Name: The Swan |
| Genitive: Deneb |
| Hemisphere: Northern Hemisphere |
| Location: Between the constellations of Cephus and Draco. |
| Visible between latitudes: +90 and -40 degrees |
| Best season: Autumn |
| Seen in three seasons: Summer, Autumn & Winter |
| Best seen in: August (map) and September (map) |
| Seen between: May and November |
| Right Ascension (RA): 21 hour |
| Declination (DEC): +40 degrees |
| Area (square degrees): 804 (16th) |
oooo
oooo
Essentials: LDN 1610
oooo
- B168 is a dense lane of cold molecular gas and dust.
o - It doesn’t shine; instead, it blocks the background starlight. In astrophysical terms, it’s:
– a filamentary molecular cloud
– composed mainly of H₂, dust grains, and trace molecules
– with densities high enough to collapse into stars at its brighter tip (the Cocoon Nebula).
o - It’s similar in nature to Barnard 68, but instead of being a compact, spherical Bok globule, B168 is stretched into a long, straight dust lane — hence the nickname Black Cigar.
oooo
oooo
oooo
oooo
oooo
oooo