Nebulae

Nebulae and star clusters

North-America nebula NGC7000 and Pelican nebula IC5070 in the constellation of Cygnus. Distance 1600 light years. Ionized hydrogen glows in red color.  Photograph taken 1st of September 2021. Canon EF100-400 tele zoom objective set to 250 millimeters. Exposures 9 x 4 minutes, Iso1600

The Cygnus Wall area of North-America nebula 6th of September 2023. Telescope used was TS Photon 200 F4 with coma corrector and camera Canon Eos 80Da. Exposures 20x100sec, Iso 800. 

Butterfly nebula IC 1318 in Cygnus. Distance 3700 light years.  Image taken 24th of September 2017.  Canon Eos 60Da, EF250mm. Exposures 4 x 2 minutes, ISO 3200.

Below is Milky Way in constellation of Aquila. There is a dark dust and molecular cloud Barnard 143,  with distance of 2000 light years. The picture area in the sky is 10x4 degrees. You can see how Milky Way  contains millions of stars. Actually in our Milky Way Galaxy there is about 400 billion stars.  The bright star on the left is Altair, with distance of 17 light years. It is twice the size of the Sun. Image taken 30th of October 2022 with EF100-400 telezoom set to 100mm. Exposures 6 x 3 minutes, Iso1600.

Horsehead nebula Barnard 33 and Flame nebula NGC 2024 in the constellation of Orion, 9th of December 2020. Distance to Horsehead nebula is 1500 light years. Distance to Flame nebula is  1200 light years. Picture taken with  Sky Watcher 80/600 ED telescope with Baader UHC-S filter. Picture is stack of 9 x 7 minutes exposures, ISO1600 and stacked with Deep Sky Stacker software.

Horsehead nebula with TS Photon 200/800, 13th of October 2023. Camera Canon Eos 80Da, exposures 19x100 seconds, Iso 800.

NGC2237 Rosette nebula in constellation of Monoceros. Distance 5200 light years. Angular size in  the sky is 1.3 degrees. Mass 10000 times mass of the Sun. The bright stars in the middle have born  from this nebula. Picture taken 2nd of March 2021 with Sky Watcher 80/600 ED telescope with Baader UHC-S filter. Picture is stack of 5 x 8 minutes exposures, ISO800. Stacked with Deep Sky Stacker software. Camera Canon Eos 80D, astro modified

 Image of Rosette below was taken 4th of March 2024 with TS Photon 200/800 telescope with Baader UHC-S filter. Picture is stack of 12 x 4 minutes exposures, ISO800. Stacked with Deep Sky Stacker software. Camera Canon Eos 80D, astro modified.

Below is NGC 1973 Running man nebula, M43 ja M42 in constellation of Orion.  Picture taken with  TS Photon 200/800 telescope, 13th of October 2023. Exposures 14 x 100 seconds, ISO800. Distance to M42 is 1300 light years. There has born about 2000 new stars in area of Orion Nebula.  From sharp pictures of Hubble Space telescope it is possible to see several proto planetary discs  around the new stars. So here new planets and solar systems are born.

The center of the Orion nebula M42. The bright four stars are born in this nebula. Photograph taken 25th of January 2022 with Celestron 8 F10 focus

Below left: M57 in constellation of Lyra. Distance 2300 light years. In center of the nebula there is a  white dwarf star. It is what is left from a star, which blow out its outer parts to space at end  of its life. The red color comes from ionized hydrogen gas. The greenish colors come from oxygen. Below right: NGC 7635 Bubble nebula in constellation of Cassiopeia. Distance 11000 light years. 

M27 Dumbbel nebula in constellation of Fox. Distance 1250 light years. In the center of this  nebula there is also a white dwarf star. Photograph taken 27.9.2021 with Celestron 8 F10 focus. Exposures 8 x 5min, Iso1600, Canon Eos 80Da

Below are two southern sky objects, places where stars are born, M16 and M17. In Finland  these are difficult to photograph since they are close to horizon. Photographs were taken 30th of August 2021  with Celestron 8 F6.3 focus. M16 Eagle nebula is in constellation of Snake. Distance 7000 light years.  Hubble space telescope took of M16 the famous picture Pillars of Creation. M17 Omega nebula is  in constellation of Sagittarius. Distance is 5000 light years.

NGC 7032 Iris nebula in constellation of Kefeus. Distance  1300 light years. It is a reflection nebula where star SAO 19158 lights up the nebula on the background. 

The Helix nebula NGC 7293, with declination -21 degrees, is always very low in horizon when looking from Finland, latitude 61 degrees north. Here is Helix nebula imaged in Kirkkonummi, southern Finland. Place was an field in Eestinkylä  with good visibility to southern horizon. Telescope Celestron 8, with F6.3 focal reducer. Camera Canon Eos 80D, astro modified. Exposures 20 x 3 minutes, Iso1600. Temperature was -1 C.

Three wide nebulae on the sky. Heart nebula IC 1805 in constellation of Cassiopeia, distance 7500 light years. Size in sky 2.5 degrees. Close to it is Soul nebula.  In same image left corner is Perseus double star cluster. Elephants Truck nebula IC 1396 in constellation of Kefeus, distance 2400 light years. California nebula NGC1499 in constellation of Perseus, distance 1000 light years. Size in sky 2.5 degrees. Images taken 30th of October 2022 with Canon Eos 80Da and EF100-400 telezoom set to 100mm. Exposures 6 x 3 minutes, Iso1600.

Star clusters

Double star cluster NGC 884 and NGC 869 in constellation of Perseus. Distance 6800 light years.   Image taken 8.10.2023. TS Photon 200 F4 Canon EOS 80Da. Stack 8 x 100 seconds, ISO 800.

Below is open star cluster M45 Pleiades. Distance 440 light years. Image taken 1st of December 2021 with SkyWatcher 80/600ED, exposures 8 x 5 minutes, ISO1600

M45 13th of October 2023. Telescope  TS Photon 200/800, camera Canon EOS 80Da. Stack 20 x 100 seconds, ISO 800.  

In constellation of Auriga there is 3 open star clusters which are visible with binoculars: M36, M37 and M38. Distances 4100, 4500 and 4200 light years. Also red nebulae IC405 and IC410 are visible. Distances 1500 and 1300 light years.

Globular star cluster Messier 13 in constellation of Hercules. Distance is 25000 light years.  This cluster has one million stars. Our galaxy has about 100-200 these kind of globular clusters.  These clusters are very old. They were born at same time as our galaxy, about 10 billion years ago. Photograph was taken 8th of April 2021  with Celestron 8 F10 focus. 

Below are more globular clusters.  M3 distance is 34000 light years. Image was taken 18.3.2021 with C8 F6 focus.
Omega Centauri is in the southern sky, distance 15800 light years. Image was taken at Gran Canaria 11.6.2013.
Messier 15 in  constellation of Pegasus 26.9.2021. Distance 32620 light years. Telescope Celestron 8 F10, Canon Eos80Da, exposures 3x5min, Iso1600.
NGC 2419 Intergalactic wanderer is far away from our galaxy, distance 300000 ligth years.
M92 at Hercules 5.8.2021, distance 26700 light years.
Messier 5 in constellation of Serpens 1.5.2022. Distance 24500 ligth years. Celestron 8 F6, Canon Eos80Da, 5x3min44sec, Iso800.
Messier 2 in  constellation of  Aquarius 26.9.2021. Distance 55000 light years. Telescope Celestron 8 F10, Canon Eos80Da, exposures 5x5min, Iso1600.

South Sky

Southern Sky objects like Milky Way Galaxy Center, Triffid and Lagoon nebulae and Omega Centauri are not well visible from Finland.  The images of them I took on a holiday trip to Gran Canaria, Arguineguin, on 11th of June 2013.  Observation place was 7th floor balcony of the Sunwing hotel. Tracking device was Sky Watcher Merlin and camera Canon Eos 60Da. Objectives were Canon EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS and EF 100-400L f/4.5. 

Above Triffid and Lagoon nebulae with travel set in Cran Canaria 2013 and below so far best try in Finland 25th of August 2013, when they were only about 3 degrees above horizon. Used then Celestron 8 F6.3.