2016 September 3 ~ M27 (planetary nebula in Vulpecula)

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Photographed at Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada

(285 km by road north of Toronto)

* Temperature 12° C.

 

* Total exposure time: 8 minutes

* 1200 mm focal length telescope

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Description:

 

From Wikipedia:

 

"The Dumbbell Nebula (also known as Apple Core Nebula, Messier 27, M 27, or NGC 6853) is a planetary nebula in the constellation Vulpecula, at a distance of about 1,360 light years.

 

This object was the first planetary nebula to be discovered; by Charles Messier in 1764. At its brightness of visual magnitude 7.5 and its diameter of about 8 arcminutes, it is easily visible in binoculars, and a popular observing target in amateur telescopes."

 

What we are seeing is the visible remains of a low-mass star's expelled gaseous outer-envelope, leaving an X-ray hot white dwarf at the centre.

 

Stars to about 17th magnitude are visible in this image. The central star in the nebula is magnitude 14.0.

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Technical information:

 

Nikon D810a camera body on Explore Scientific 152 mm (6") apochromatic refracting telescope, mounted on Astrophysics 1100GTO equatorial mount with a Kirk Enterprises ball head

 

Eight stacked subframes; each subframe:

1200 mm focal length

ISO 4000; 1 minute exposure at f/8; unguided

(with LENR - long exposure noise reduction)

 

Subframes registered in RegiStar;

Stacked and processed in Photoshop CS6 (levels, brightness, contrast, sharpening)

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Done