Owl Nebula

[Bill Richards]

The Owl Nebula (aka M97) is a planetary nebula located about 2000 light-years away. It's approximately 8000 years old and is known for its two dark, eye-like patches, formed by a barrel-shaped inner shell, which give it an owl-like appearance. The nebula formed when a dying Sun-like star ran out of hydrogen fuel, collapsed from a red giant to a white dwarf, and ejected its outer envelope. The expelled material is now heated by the radiation of the central white dwarf, producing the nebula’s glow. The nebula has been gradually expanding and will completely disperse into space over the next several thousand years

This is the result of over 14 hours of exposure time taken over 5 nights in early May 2026.

Equipment and Software:
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Mount: Paramount MX+ Series 6
Telescope: Astro-Physics AP155 6” refractor
Auto-Focuser: Optec FT30 Focuslynx
Imaging Camera: QHY268C
Filter: Radian Triad Tri-band filter
Guide Camera: ASI174MM-Mini on OAG
Imaging S/W: NINA
Guiding S/W: PHD2
Image Processing S/W: PixInsight

Exposure Details:
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Camera Temperature -10C
Bias: 30
Gain: 56
174 x 300s
Plus 32x Darks, Flats, and Bias frames

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[JimFox]

Wow! That's super cool Bill! You got lots of nice detail in that. I like that you captured that subtle banding in the core of it.