M57: The Ring Nebula
The Ring Nebula in the constellation of
Lyra is a planetary nebula. The
star in the center is quickly spitting out its atmosphere into
space. Quite soon it will become a white dwarf (a dead star).
The various images below have been
processed differently, each emphasizing a particular aspect.
Images taken: Sept. 28-29, Oct. 1, 21-22,
and Nov. 3, 2008, by Kyle Sjostrom,
Sarah Gardner, Alex Weiss, John Mann, Amy Beam and Grace Anne
Joseph, Cody Jordan, Katrina Hayes, Erin Singleton, Emily
Hightower, Porter Wells, Tyler Firth.
Telescope: Meade 12 in with f/5.6 focal
reducer (f=67in).
Camera: SBIG ST-10 CCD
Exposure times: 84 min [OIII], 70 min
[SII], 140 min H-alpha, 52 min red, 50 min green, 50 min blue: a
total of 7.5 hours.
Image processing: CCDoops + CCDSoft +
CCDsharp + Photoshop CS.
The star field is RGB (correct star
colors), the nebula is narrowband. Notice the abundance of
triple ionized oxygen (green) in the middle:
The nebula is narrowband, with H-alpha and
[O-III] enhanced to emphasize the halo. The star field is RGB.
Exposures: 30
sec red, 45 sec green, 120 sec blue.
Image processing: CCDoops + CCDSoft +
CCDsharp + Photoshop CS.
Pure RGB (correct colors) with faint
details enhanced to emphasize the faint, 14.8 mg spiral galaxy
IC1296 on the picture.
Pure RGB (correct colors). The midtones
contrast enhanced to emphesize the structure of the nebula.
