Object Information                                            Imaging Details

When a star of less than a few solar masses depletes its hydrogen and helium nuclear fuel, the core collapses into a white dwarf and the outer layers are blown away in a series of layers. Light from the dwarf star ioninizes and illuminates the expanding gas cloud creating what is known as a planetary nebula. The Dumbbell Nebula is one of the closest (1000 l-y) and brightest (mag. 7.5) planetary nebulae. It is a beautiful object to observe visually through a modest aperture telescope.

This object was imaged at City of Rocks State Park during the Fall 2006 Southern New Mexico Star Party. The sky was cloudless with moderate seeing.

Clicking the above image will bring up a higher resolution image. Clicking on the map yields a more detailed map of the region around M27.

Telescope:

Celestron NexStar GPS 11"