Planetary nebulae owe their name to a misunderstanding: through the telescopes of earlier centuries they appeared round and pale, like distant planets. In reality they are the cast-off gas shells of dying suns. Near the end of its life, a sun-like star swells, sheds its outer layers, and makes that gas glow with its intense radiation. The result is some of the most delicate and colourful objects in the sky – rings, hourglasses and gossamer shells. Classics such as the Ring Nebula and the Dumbbell Nebula belong here, as do smaller, more demanding targets from the NGC and Abell catalogs. Many planetary nebulae are small and require long focal lengths and good seeing, while others are extended and faint. Narrowband filters help bring out their characteristic oxygen and hydrogen lines. This page gathers every planetary nebula I have photographed so far. Click into any object to learn more about it and see all the astrophoto posts it appears in.
The Dumbbell Nebula is a planetary nebula in the constellation Vulpecula, located about 861 light-years away, and reaches its annual culmination at astronomical midnight and is best observed late July.
The Owl Nebula is a planetary nebula in the constellation Ursa Major, lying about 2,030 light-years away, and reaches its annual culmination at astronomical midnight and is best observed early March.
