A large dusty emission nebula in the constellation Cepheus. It is ionized by the luminous blue star HD 206267, which lies near its center. IC 1396 lies approximately 3,000 light-years away and sprawls across roughly 3 degrees of the sky (equivalent to several hundred light-years), making it one of the largest emission complexes visible from Earth. The snake-like formation visible on its right flank in this photo is VDB 142. The prominent star at top is Mu Cephei, also known as the Garnet Star, after which the nebula is named.
