ASTRO IMAGES By Doug Wheeland

              M57 - Planetary Nebula in Lyra

                     EQUIPMENT
Telescope ----  12.5" RCOS RC at 114" FL
Mount --------  Astro-Physics AP1200
Camera -------  SBIG ST8E/CFW8
Guided -------  SBIG AO7

             IMAGE INFORMATION
24 Jul. 2003
70 min. Total
10 min. Sub-Exposures
Unfiltered
Acquired Using MaxIm CCD

                      PROCESSING
Data Reduction Using MaxIm DL
Finished Using Adobe Photo Shop

                        LOCATION
Star Ranch Road Observatory
South Western Colorado Springs
Elevation 6500 Feet

    Click For Full Size

    Click For Reduced Size

Also known as "The Ring Nebula", it is actually a tube that we are looking through from end to end.  The central star was originally similar to our Sun but has ejected many bursts of energy and material as it evolved into a white dwarf star.  We see layers of surrounding gas glowing as the shock waves travel outward.  The Ring is about one light year in diameter and 2000 light years distant.

All Images Copyright Douglas R. Wheeland

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