Nebulae
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The Bubble Nebula - Also designated as NGC 7635 this remarkable emission nebula is about 11,000 light-years away in the direction of the constellation, Cassiopeia. It is caused by the stellar wind from the hot, massive star inside the bubble near the top pushing the gas in the hydrogen cloud surrounding it out.. The radiation from that star also excites the hydrogen cloud, causing it to glow red.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/7 with Starizona SCT corrector Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 13 X 30 minutes = 6.5 hrs |
The Flame (NGC 2024) and the Horsehead (B33) - This region in the constellation, Orion, is part of a large star-forming complex called the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex. The bright star left of center is Alnitak, a 2nd magnitude star that is the easternmost star in Orion's belt. The pinkish object below Alnitak is the Flame Nebula, a region of glowing hydrogen gas being illuminated by Alnitak. On the right is the Horsehead Nebula. Just below the center of the image is NGC 2023, a gas cloud reflecting light from a star embedded in it. It is one of the brightest sources of fluorescent molecular hydrogen in the sky. And finally near the bottom of the image is another reflection nebula, IC 435.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 19 X 45 seconds = 14 min 15 sec. |
NGC 1999 - This odd reflection nebula is 1500 light-years away in Orion and is surrounded by clouds of gas and dust. It has a triangular dark inclusion that was originally thought to be a dense dust cloud blocking the light from stars, but submillimeter wave studies have shown that it is actually an empty hole, i.e. there is nothing in it. How it got that way is not known. The region also contains numerous young, active stars, many of them associated with Herbig-Haro objects, shock fronts caused by jets emanating from the stars.. The two reddish regions just below NGC 1999 are HH1 and HH2.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/7 with Starizona SCT corrector Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 9 X 30 minutes = 4.5hrs |
The Witch's Head Nebula - Also known as IC 2118, this faint reflection nebula, about 900 light-years away in the constellation Eridanus, is illuminated by the nearby supergiant, Rigel, in Orion. It is believed to be the remnant of an ancient supernova.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 37 X 5 minutes = 3 hr 5 min |
The Crab Nebula (Messier 1) - This puff of gas and dust in the constellation, Taurus, is the result of a supernova explosion observed by Arab, Chinese and Japanese astronomers in 1054 CE. Images taken over time show that it is still expanding at a high rate. The remnant of the star that exploded is a rapidly rotating neutron star visible in this image as the lower of a close pair of dim stars near the center of the nebula.This star is one of the first "pulsars" discovered when it was observed in 1968 to emit pulses of electromagnetic radiation about 30 times per second. The Crab Nebula was thought to be rather quiet when in early 2011 a strong gamma ray burst was oberved to emanate from it. This burst is not completely understood, but is thought to have been caused by a rapid reconfiguration of the magnetic field of the pulsar.
Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/7 with an Astro-Physics 0.67X telecompressor Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposures: 12 X 10 min = 2 hrs |
Messier 16 (Eagle Nebula) - M16 is an open star cluster in the constellation, Serpens, that is imbedded in a star-forming cloud of hydogen gas containing a structure that looks like an eagle, hence the name. The cluster was discovered in 1745-46 by Jean-Phillipe de Cheseaux. It is about 6500 light-years away and contains a famous structure imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope and named "The Pillars of Creation".
Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/7 with an Astro-Physics 0.67X telecompressor Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposures: 18 X 10 min = 3 hrs. |
The Great Orion Nebula (Messier 42) and the Running Man Nebula (NGC 1977) - One night as the clouds came and went I noticed a clear spot in Orion, so I set the camera running with one minute exposures of this region of Orion. I only got six exposures before it clouded over. This just shows that with a bright object at f/2 it does not take long to get a reasonable image. This is a region of dense nebulosity and intense star formation about 1300 light-years away. The Great Orion Nebula is the lower half of the image and the Running Man nebula is the upper blue region. You have to look close to see the shadowy running man.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 6 X 1 minute = 6 min |
Messier 78 - The dust in this cloud, which is about 1600 light-years away in Orion, reflects light from nearby stars, giving it a blue color. It is the brightest reflection nebula in the sky. The reddish glow is cause by emission from gas illuminated by hot stars. Dark dust lanes add to the complexity of this beautiful region of the Milky Way. A closer view of this is further down this web page.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 32 X 5 minutes = 2 hr 40 min |
IC 1396 - Also called the Elephant Trunk Nebula, this dense region of interstellar gas and dust in Cepheus is illuminated by nearby hot, young stars. Of particular importance is HD206267, a massive O-type star just off the left side of this image. The image also contains vdB 142, a small reflection nebula at the end of the elephant’s trunk. IC 1396 is about 2400 light-years away.
Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/7 with an Astro-Physics 0.67X telecompressor Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 16 X 15 minutes = 4 hrs |
The Christmas Tree Cluster and the Cone Nebula - This complex region of red hydrogen emission and blue reflection is about 2500 light-years away in the constellation, Monoceros. It consists of the Cone Nebula at the bottom and the star cluster just above it, which forms an inverted Christmas tree. The whole region is designated as NGC 2264.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 40 X 5 minutes = 3 hr 20 min. |
NGC 6888 - About 4000 light-years away, this nebula in Cygnus, known as the Crescent Nebula, is a bubble of gas that is being expanded and illuminated by the bright star at the center of the image. This star is a Wolf-Rayet star, which means that it is very massive and and near the end of its lifespan. It is burning its fuel rapidly and producing a very strong stellar wind. It will soon come to an end as a spectacular supernova.
This image has been enhanced by blending exposures in light emitted by excited hydrogen gas (H-alpha) with the LRGB exposures to better show the nebulosity within and surrounding NGC 6888. Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/5 with 2" Antares 0.5X reducer Camera: SBIG ST-2000XM Exposures: L = 1 hr 30 min, R = G = B = 30 min, H-alpha (6 nm) = 4 hours unbinned |
Cygnus Loop - These three images show some of the visible portions of a large supernova remnant known as the Cygnus Loop. It was discovered in 1784 by William Herschel and is now known to be about 1400 light-years away. The whole Cygnus Loop, all of which does not radiate at visible wavelengths, is about 3° in diameter. This makes the linear diameter about 50 light years. The red and blue filaments are the emission from hydrogen and oxygen, respectively. The supernova that formed the Loop happened between 5000 and 8000 years ago. The top image is NGC 6992 (Eastern Veil); the middle one is Pickering's Triangle; and the bottom one is NGC 6960 (Western Veil).The bright, 4th magnitude star in the Western Veil image is 52 Cygni. It is much closer than the nebulae at about 200 light-years.
Pickering's Triangle, which is situated between the eastern and westen nebulae, is much fainter than either of them and was discovered photographically by Williamina Fleming in 1904. It carries the name of Edward Charles Pickering, who was the director of the Harvard College Observatory, where she did her work. Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/7 with an Astro-Physics 0.67X telecompressor Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposures: Eastern Veil - 17 X 15 min = 4 hr 15 min; Pickering's Triangle - 24 X 15 min = 6 hr; Western Veil - 16 X 15 min = 4 hr. |
The Pelican Nebula - Also known as IC 5070 and IC 5067, this large region of glowing hydrogen gas in the constellation, Cygnus, is about 1800 light-year away. It is a region of intense star formation. In this view the reason for its name is obvious, but, if you rotate it 90° to the right, it looks like a rabbit.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 9 X 5 minutes = 45 min |
The Rosette Nebula - This cloud of ionized hydrogen in Monoceros, almost three time the angular size of the moon, is probably the birthplace of open cluster, NGC 2244, of hot, young stars. The radiation from those stars is ionizing the gas and the stellar winds are blowing the gas outward from the center of the cloud.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 65 minutes |
The Trifid Nebula - Also designated as Messier 20, this region of nebulosity in the constellation, Sagittarius is about 5000 light-years away. It is a combination of an open star cluster (bright stars near center), a hydrogen emission nebula (red), a reflection nebula (blue) and dark nebulae (the dark lanes).
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/7 with Starizona SCT corrector Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 10 X 30 minutes = 5 hrs |
Van den Bergh 141 - Also designated as Sharpless 2-136, this region of dust clouds in Cepheus is call the Ghost Nebula for obvious reasons. It is about 1200 light-years away and is illuminated by several stars buried within the dust. The darkish cloud on the upper left is Bok Globule, CB230, and may be the early stage of the formation of a double star.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 38 X 5 minutes = 3 hrs 10 min |
Sharpless 2-106 - This emission nebula about 2000 light-years away in Cygnus, is a compact region of dust and gas with a young star, S106 IR, embedded in it. SR106 IR is only about 100,000 years old and is very massive, about 15 solar masses. It is streaming matter from jets at both of its poles. These jets heat the surrounding dust and gas giving rise to an hourglass-shaped nebula. The filaments in the lower region look helical, which could indicate a magnetic field. The angular size of the nebula is about 3 arcmin.
Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/7 with an Astro-Physics 0.67X telecompressor Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 18 X 15 minutes = 4 hrs 30 min |
IC 4954 and IC 4955 - These two reflection nebulae are about 7000 light-years away in Vulpecula. They are near the open star cluster, Lund 918 (also designated as Roslund 4), and IC 4954, which is called the Little Ghost Nebula, contains a shock front caused by outflow of material from the hot, young stars in the cluster.
Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/7 with an Astro-Physics 0.67X telecompressor Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 28 X 15 minutes = 7 hrs |
Cassiopeia A (supernova remnant) - This exceedingly faint nebula was discovered by radio astronomers at Cambridge in the early days of radio astronomy (1947) and had to wait until 1950 when long-baseline radio interferometry was good enough to provide a location in the sky so optical astronomers could locate it. Optical astronomers used spectroscopy to confirm that it is a rapidly expanding supernova remnant and were able to determine that the supernova should have been visible on earth around 1667. It is the most recent Milky Way supernova known. There are no records of it having been observed, though in 1680 the first Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, recorded a new star in Cassiopeia that some historians believe may have been the supernova. The position of Flamsteed’s star is not in precisely the correct location, and the observation was 13 years too late. Some have speculated that the supernova may have been dimmed by dust and gas in the Milky Way. In 1999, the Chandra X-ray Observatory discovered an compact X-ray source near the center that is probably a neutron star or a black hole.
Telescope: Meade 8" LX200R @ f/7 with an Astro-Physics 0.67X telecompressor Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 32 X 15 minutes = 8 hrs |
NGC 7497 and Integrated Flux Nebulae -The spiral galaxy, NGC 7497, in the center is 60 million light-years distant and is seen through dust clouds just 1000 light-years away in Pegasus.The dust clouds are above the plane of the Milky Way and illuminated by the overall glow of the stars in the galaxy. Such clouds are called Integrated Flux Nebulae and are associated with molecular clouds, MBM 54 in this case. There are other small, distant galaxies visible, the most notable being PGC 70596 above and to the left of NGC 7497.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 58 X 5 minutes = 4 hrs 50 min |
The Jellyfish Nebula - Also known as IC 443 and Sharpless 248, this large supernova remnant in Gemini is about 5000 light-years away. It is estimated that the supernova occurred sometime between 3000 and 30,000 years ago. The nebula's extended shape is thought to result from interaction with surrounding molecular clouds. Embedded in this nebula is a neutron star, likely the remnant of the supernova.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD Exposure: 75 minutes |
The California Nebula - Also designated as NGC 1499 this region of glowing hydrogen in Perseus is about 1000 light-years away. It gets its name from its shape. The blue glow in the lower right corner is from the nearby 4th magnitude star, Menkib.
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/2 with Hyperstar 3 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Orion ST-80 with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 12 X 5 minutes = 1 hr |
Herschel’s Ray (NGC 2736) - This nebula in the constellation, Vela, also known as the Pencil Nebula, is about 800 light-years from earth. Discovered by John Herschel in 1835, it is part of the Vela supernova remnant that was produced by a stellar explosion that occurred about 11, 000 years ago. It is thought to have been formed by a shock wave emanating from the supernova.
Telescope: Meade 12" LX850 @ f/8 Camera: SBIG STF-8300C Autoguiding: Meade Starlock Exposure: 54 X 10 min = 9 hrs Data gathered by Fabian Rodriguez and processed by me. |
NGC 2261 (Hubble's Variable Nebula) - The small, fan-shaped reflection nebula 2500 light-years away in Monoceros was discovered by William Herschel in 1783. In 1916 Edwin Hubble noticed that its brightness varied over periods of weeks to months, hence the name. It is now understood to be a thin parabolic funnel of gas being illuminated by a bright proto-star, R Monocerotis, at its throat. Its variability is thought to be caused by dust clouds emanating from R Monocerotis and casting shadows on the walls of the nebula. Also, R Monocerotis is emitting jets of material from its poles; the northern jet is hidden by the nebula, but the southern jet is visible below the nebula. The reversed black and white image better shows the structure of this complicated nebula. For more information on this fascinating object seehttp://www.cc.umanitoba.ca/faculties/science/astronomy/cbrown/imaging/hvn/ .
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/5 with Optec 0.5X reducer/corrector Camera: SBIG ST-2000XM Exposures: L = 90 min, R = G = B = 30 min |
R Aquarii and Cederblad 211 - R Aquarii is a symbiotic binary star, and Cederblad 211 is a complex nebula surrounding the star. A symbiotic binary is comprised of a white dwarf and a red giant orbiting each other. The white dwarf is pulling material off the red giant, and, in the case of R Aquarii, it is sending streams of the material in loops around the pair. The separation of the stars has been measured to be 55 milliarcseconds, and they are about 700 light-years away. The nebula is about I.5 arcmin across. A high resolution HaRGB image made by Adam Block with the 32-inch telescope at Mount Lemmon is here - http://www.caelumobservatory.com/gallery/raquarii.shtml
Telescope: Meade 14" LX200GPS @ f/6.8 Camera: SBIG ST-8300C Autoguiding: Starlight Xpress OAG with Meade DSI using PHD2 Exposure: 8 X 30 minutes = 4 hrs |
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