What is going on in this photo? Near the center of the frame, a luminous star is shedding millions of tons of gas each day. Over many eons, that gas has intricately coalesced into the subject of this frame: the Crescent Nebula. In the constellation of Cygnus, the red hydrogen gas of the Crescent is shrouded in an envelope of blue oxygen, giving the appearance of a fissured brain in a blue bubble floating through space. However, in several thousand years, the central star will exhaust its nuclear fuel, collapse under its own gravity, and tumultuously explode in supernova, forever erasing the fine structures of the Crescent.
Acquisition Date: June 22, 2021–July 8, 2021
Acquisition Site: Backyard
Image Details: Hα 124 x 300s (10h 20m), Oiii 110 x 300s (9h 10m)
Equipment: QHY600M-PH, Takahashi FSQ-106EDXIII, AP900GTO, Chroma 3nm Hα and Oiii filters