| "The sky is the ultimate art gallery just above us." - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 82) |
Astrophotography by Jason Jennings |
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| Nebulae :: RCW11 | |
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| Object | RCW11 - Gourd Nebula |
| Comment |
RCW11 (aka Sharpless 308) is a large, faint bubble shaped nebula surrounding the Wolf-Rayet star WR6 (EZ CMa) in the constellation Canis Major. The Wolf-Rayet star is the bright blue star near the center of the image and has been the subject of considerable research. At an estimated distance of 5,200 light-years, it is one of the closest Wolf-Rayet stars to our solar system. RCW11 is nearly 3/4 degree in size, and is the result of fast Wolf-Rayet winds sweeping nebulous filaments outward. The nebula has an estimated age of 70,000 years and is expanding at velocity of 60 km/s. The teal/blue colour of the nebula is mapped as ionised oxygen which dominates the nebula's emission. An internal red hydrogen emission shell reveals a bubble within a bubble appearance. The nebula is sometimes referred to as the Gourd Nebula due to its shape that resembles a Calabash fruit. Image is a [Ha+L]RGB composite with HA and OIII clipping masks |
| Optics | Modified ASA N16 Astrograph F/3.5 (1420mm FL) |
| Camera | Apogee Aspen CG16070 - 1x1 bin (image scale: 1.07 arcsec/pix) |
| Mount | Software Bisque Paramount ME |
| Exposure | Total exposure time: 11 hours |
| Date | March 2016 |