NGC 7023 is the designation of an open star cluster which is embedded in a reflection nebula located in the west central section of the constellation Cepheus. The nebula is known as "Iris Nebula" and is catalogued as LBN 487 and as number 4 in the Caldwell catalogue. Its dust particles reflect the light of the 7.1 mag star V 280 Cep. The distance to the nebula measures about 1300 light years and the diameter about 6 light years.
The Iris Nebula shines at an apparent magnitude of 6.8 and is theoretically bright enough to be visible with binoculars, but its large apparent size (18 arc minutes) and diffuse nature makes this a hard task.
NGC 7023 was discovered by Sir William Herschel in 1794.
vdB 141 - Ghost Nebula and Surrounding Area, telelens photograph.
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