Messier 27 (aka Dumbbell Nebula)
Characteristics:
Position
Angle: 0 degrees
RA: 19h 59m 35s (J2000)
Dec: +22degrees 42' 52" (J2000)
Description:
Messier
27, also known as the Dumbbell Nebula, was the 27th object categorized
by Messier during his search for objects that could be confused for
comets. M27 is a planetary nebula, which represents the end stage
of stars about the same size as our Sun (in contrast, stars much larger
than our Sun typically undergo a supernova explosion). Such
stars experience a phase of continued helium burning on their surface,
long after the fuel in their core has been exhausted. The outer
layer is shed into space, igniting surrounding elements such as
hydrogen through excitation by the solar wind and heat. The term
"planetary" nebula is a misnomer and was coined by Herschel, based upon
its superficial visual resemblance to his recently discovered planet,
Uranus. More information about M27 may be found here.
Photographic
Details:
Dates of image
acquistion: June 13, 14, 15, 2022
Scope:
Celestron 9.25" standard SCT (native f10) with 0.63 focal reducer
(spaced to achieve f6.1 = 1444mm effective focal length), on the
Takahashi NJP
Mount
Autoguider: None
Camera: ZWO ASI1600,
-20C, 3.8
micron pixel size, image scale 0.54"/pixel given above set up
Filters: Baader Ha and
OIII narrowband filters; ZWO 7-position filter wheel for 2" filters
Exposures: Total
exposure 5.5 hours (3 hours Ha, 2.5 hours OIII, 60sec
subs,
unguided dither every 2 subs, ASI1600 Gain 200, offset 40, Read noise
1.55 e rms)
Post-processing:
Calibrated, aligned and
stacked in Maxim, followed
by DDP
in ImagesPlus (IP) and processing in Photoshop
CS
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may not be reproduced without author permission.
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