| "The sky is the ultimate art gallery just above us." - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 82) |
Astrophotography by Jason Jennings |
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| Star Clusters :: M52 environs | |
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| Object | M52 environs |
| Comment |
The open cluster M52 appears lost within the rich Milky Way star fields of the constellation Cassiopeia. This cluster consists of approximately 200 stars that are at varying stages of their lives, though most are still in main sequence. The cluster resides 3,000 light years away. To the upper-right of M52, the diffused nebula NGC7635 glows brilliantly. This nebula is commonly known as the Bubble Nebula due to its sphere-like figure. The nebula surrounds a hot star approximately 20 times larger than our Sun, which is visible on the left edge of the bubble. Ultraviolet light from the star causes the gas to glow through a process known as fluorescence. Winds of material are blown from the star which gives the nebula its characteristic outline. The Bubble Nebula is approximately 11,000 light years distant. At the very top of the image is the lesser-known bright emission nebula NGC7538 which is located in the adjacent constellation of Cepheus. This nebula houses the largest known protostar which is approximately 300 times the size of our Solar System. NGC7538 is 9,100 light years away. This image is an RRGB composite - R channel also used for luminance. |
| Optics | Takahashi FSQ-106ED F/5 (530mm FL) |
| Camera | SBIG STL-11000M - 1x1 bin (image scale: 3.5 arcsec/pix) |
| Mount | Paramount ME |
| Exposure | Total exposure time: 1.5 hours (R:30min,G:30min,B:30min) |
| Date | 16/10/2007 |