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SPECIAL NOTE: Poor quality image display is frequently the result of your monitor setup. For best results use True Color (32bit) and 1024 x 768 in Control Panel>Display Properties>Settings.

  • M57 Ring Nebula in Lyra

  The Ring Nebula is one of the most popular objects in amateur astronomy. This type nebula is called a planetary nebula because their appearance in small telescopes looks like a planet. This is estimated to be about 1300 light-years distant; about .5 light-years in diameter.

  • M13 The Great Hercules Cluster.

The Hercules Cluster is the largest and brightest globular cluster in the northern hemisphere, easily seen in small telescopes and binoculars. It is estimated to be 21,000 light-years distant and about 140 light-years in diameter. It shines with the luminosity of a quarter million suns and must contain several hundred thousand to a million stars.

  • M42 The Great Orion Nebula in Orion.

The Great Orion Nebula is easily recognized visually as the sword flowing from the belt of the Orion Constellation. The center glows brightly from the new star generation occurring in this part of the nebula causing the tremendous excitation of gases and stellar particles seen in the fan-shaped portions of the image. The nebula is believed to be about 1500 light-years from earth and covers an area of 20 to 100 light-years.

This pair of galaxies are separated by less than one-half degree. They are about 29 million light-years distant. M66 is the bottom right hand object in the image. M65 is the top right hand image. NGC 3628 is to the left (North). The three galaxies are often referred to as the Leo Trio.

  • M3 Globular Cluster.

This is one of the three brightest globular clusters seen in the northern hemisphere. It is estimated to be 27,000 light-years distant and contains 45,000 stars within a diameter of 130 light-years.

The two brightest galaxies in the M81 Galaxy Group. The spiral arms of M81 are visible. M82 appears cigar-shaped and shows mottled texture and dark streaks as a result of dust lanes in our field of view. Both are about 11.4 million light-years away.

This is the largest and brightest globular cluster visible in our heavens. It is about 16,000 light-years distant and contains more than one million stars. The average distance between stars in its core is estimated at one-tenth of a light-year.

  • M51 Whirlpool Galaxy.

Named for its highly visible spiral arms, it is a perfect example of a spiral galaxy. It is much like our own Milky-way and the Andromeda Galaxy. NGC 5195, the smaller galaxy has lost most of its stars to M51 as a result of a close encounter sometime in the distant past. M51 is 35 million light-years away.

  • M5 Globular Cluster.

One of the three brightest globulars in the northern hemisphere, it is about 27,000 light-years away and contains about one quarter of a million stars.

  • M17 Swan or Omega Nebula.

You only need to look at the image to know why it is commonly known as the Swan nebula. It lies about 6,800 light years distant.

The Eagle Nebula (IC 4703) is embedded in the open cluster M16 comprised of about 50 very hot stars providing the source to fluoresce the gases of the nebula. It about 6,500 light years away and is part of the same gaseous complex of M17 in the Sagittarius-Carina Spiral Arm of the Milky Way.

  • M20 Trifid Nebula.

Named for the distinct three sections formed by the dark lanes emanating from its center.  The nearby very hot star provids energy to fluoresce the nebula. It is estimated to be about 6,700 light years away and is part of M8, the Lagoon Nebula.

This very faint nebula lies near the end of a dark nebula. The dark nebula composed of interstellar matter blocks much of the visible light generated by the four stars in the nebula and two brighter stars north and south of its center.

  • NGC6960 Veil Nebula.

The Veil Nebula is composed of three wispy and elongated waves of emission nebula formed by a supernova explosion some 30 to 40 thousand years ago. NGC6960 is the western segment sometimes referred to as the Network Nebula (Latest). NGC6992-95 is the eastern portion and is often called the Filament Nebula (Latest), although these names are often used interchangeably. The central portion is referred to as Pickering's Triangular Wisp . The three segments together may be called the Cirrus Nebula, Bridal Veil, or the Veil Nebula.

The Pinwheel Galaxy is part of the Local Galaxy Group and is the third largest. Andromeda and the Milky Way exceeding it in size, but not brightness. It is a good example of a spiral galaxy like our own Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxy. It is 2.4 million light years distant.

This image is a complex of many stellar phenomena. A heavy dust lane (Bernard33) forms the basis for this spectacular scene. The image in the shape of a horse's head is the most prominant object in this dark nebula. Above the ridgeline is the red glow of the emission nebula (IC434). NGC 2023 is the small bluish emission and reflection nebula just below B33 and to the left. NGC2024, the Flame Nebula, is the very interesting emission nebula below the very bright star Zeta Orionis.

  • M31 The Great Andromeda Galaxy.

 Our nearest galactic neighbor, it closely resembles our Milky Way in size and shape as both are classic spiral galaxies. Easily seen visually on a clear dark night, it is about 2.2 million light years away, which means the light we see left the galaxy when woolly mammoths roamed earth! It is about 150,000 light years across, compared to the Milky Way at about 110,000 light years. It contains a mass of approximately 300 billion suns. The object to the lower right is the satellite galaxy M110. To the left and above the image would be M32 another satellite galaxy.

The North American Nebula is a very large and bright emission nebula in Cygnus. In very dark skies, it is visible as a bright patch of the Milky Way just east of Deneb. It is too large for most telescopes, but is an easy and very spectacular binocular target. This image shows the Isthmus of Panama and Gulf of Mexico portion of the nebula. It is estimated to be about 3,000 light years distant.

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