NGC 6888 (the Crescent Nebula): an interstellar nebula in Cygnus

This nebula is formed by the fast stellar wind of the Wolf-Rayet star HD 192162 colliding with the slower wind that left this star ~ 300,000 years ago.

It is 5000 light years away form us. It cannot be classified as a planetary nebula as its central star is not a white dwarf.

This star looks as a ~7.5 mg variable star, a very massive red supergiant, 21 solar masses, with photospheric temperature 70,000 K.

Images taken: Oct. 24, 2022, by Autumn Payne and Lee Holmes.

Telescope: 17 in CDK.

Camera: SBIG ST-10 CCD.

Exposures: 1 hour in each of red, green, blue; 2.5 hours in H-alpha, 2,5 hours [OIII], total 8 hours.

Image processing: CCDoops + CCDSoft + Photoshop CS.