Nebulae - Birds in Flight
M17 has also been called the Swan Nebula or the Omega Nebula, because of its characteristic
shape. The nebula of glowing hydrogen gas gives birth to a loosely grouped open cluster of
young stars, which in turn excite and illuminate their parent cloud. M17 lies 4,890 light years
away in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius. The "white swan" alone encompasses 12
light years of space!
This image is a combination of 34 separate exposures, each 90 seconds long, with an ST-10
XME CCD camera though a 4" refractor. A year later, I took a close up view with an 8"
telescope....click here to see it.
shape. The nebula of glowing hydrogen gas gives birth to a loosely grouped open cluster of
young stars, which in turn excite and illuminate their parent cloud. M17 lies 4,890 light years
away in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius. The "white swan" alone encompasses 12
light years of space!
This image is a combination of 34 separate exposures, each 90 seconds long, with an ST-10
XME CCD camera though a 4" refractor. A year later, I took a close up view with an 8"
telescope....click here to see it.
The Eagle Nebula, also called M16, was the 16th entry in Messier's catalog of non-comet fuzzies. It
includes a cloud of gas from which new stars are emerging. The Eagle nebula resides 9000 light years
away in the direction of the constellation Serpens Cauda. The Hubble Space Telescope processed a
closeup view of the center of the nebula. The term "Pillars of Creation" has been applied to this central
area.
My first photo of this object is a combination of over 20 separate exposures, each 2 minutes long.
with ST-10 XME camera, 4" refractor. One year later, I took a close-up of the center...click here to
see it.
includes a cloud of gas from which new stars are emerging. The Eagle nebula resides 9000 light years
away in the direction of the constellation Serpens Cauda. The Hubble Space Telescope processed a
closeup view of the center of the nebula. The term "Pillars of Creation" has been applied to this central
area.
My first photo of this object is a combination of over 20 separate exposures, each 2 minutes long.
with ST-10 XME camera, 4" refractor. One year later, I took a close-up of the center...click here to
see it.
Music: Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd