Massive Sunspot 3354

Massive Sunspot 3354 is so large you could fit 10 earths side by side into it.

Left half Hydrogen Aplha Right Half White Light Filter 99.9% 2023-06-29 12:27

 

M17 NGC 6618 The Swan Nebula

The swan or Omega Nebula is about 6,000 light years from my telescope. However it is 15 light years wide! What is amazing is we are seeing it edge on can you if we saw it face on it would be 40 light years in diameter! NGC 6618 lies embedded in the nebulosity and causes the gases of the nebula to shine due to radiation from these hot, young stars. 2023-06-27 10:00 PM to 2023-06-28 1:00 AM 133 frames taken, 63 thrown out for turbulence. 

 

NGC6611 M16 The Eagle Nebula

 The Eagle Nebula is part of a diffuse emission nebula, about 5700 light-years distant and is actually 55 by 70 light years across. In the middle is the so called pillars of creation, as new stars are forming there.

5340 total exposure time in seconds, Camera cooled to 0°C, 30 seconds average exposure time, 178 of 247 frames processed/stacked.

M8\NGC6523 Lagoon Nebula

M8 is the opening act for Nebula season, so I grabbed it last night. The light took 5,200 years to reach my camera. The massive stars embedded within the nebula give off enormous amounts of ultraviolet radiation, ionizing the gas and causing it to shine. It is low on the horizon for most of the United States and therefor subject to atmospheric turbulence. For Tucson it is low but not too bad (34 images rejected for turbulence).,210 frames of 30 seconds = 1 hour 45 minutes of exposure.

ASTAP for plate solving, mount sync, and frame stacking, Siril for histogram stretching and color verification, StarNet for star equalization, DarkTable for final composition and copyright.