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Stars, Stellar Systems, and Nebulae
NebulaeEmission nebulae are clouds of high temperature gas. The atoms in the cloud are energized by ultraviolet light from a nearby star and emit radiation as they fall back into lower energy states (in much the same way as a neon light). These nebulae are usually red because the predominant emission line of hydrogen happens to be red (other colours are produced by other atoms, but hydrogen is by far the most abundant). Emission nebulae are usually the sites of recent and ongoing star formation.
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1  Title: M43 Nebula. Description: M43 is actually a part of the Great Orion Nebula, M42, which is separated from the main nebula by an impressive, turbulent dark lane. Date: 2002. Credits: Nik Szymanek (University of Hertfordshire) and Simon Tulloch (ING). Technical information: Wide-Field Camera on Isaac Newton Telescope. This is a 300 second exposure in H-alpha combined with colour information from an amateur CCD image. Available formats: JPEG (261 K) | TIFF (4608 K) | PDF (with text).  Description: NGC 7635, the Bubble nebula. A massive star that is not only bright and blue, but also emitting a fast stellar wind of ionized gas, created this huge space bubble. The Bubble nebula is actually the smallest of three bubbles surrounding massive star BD+602522, and part of gigantic bubble network S162 created with the help of other massive stars. As fast moving gas expands off BD+602522, it pushes surrounding sparse gas into a shell. The energetic starlight then ionizes the shell, causing it to glow. The Bubble Nebula is about 10 light-years across and visible with a small telescope towards the constellation of Cassiopeia. PDF (with text). Date: 1992. Copyright: Malin-IAC-RGO. Technical information: Photographic 3-colour composition from the Isaac Newton Telescope.  Title: Fox Fur Nebula. Description: The Fox Fur Nebula is part of the NGC 2264 region and it emits light because of the ultraviolet radiation generated by the blue stars of the nearby star cluster. Date: 2010. Credits: Rafael Barrena (IAC) and Pablo Rodríguez-Gil (ING). Technical information: Wide-Field Camera on Isaac Newton Telescope. This is a 7×300 second exposure in H-alpha. Available formats: JPEG.
1  Date: 1992. Description: NGC 6914 and a group of reflection nebulae. PDF (with text). Copyright: Malin-IAC-RGO. Technical information: Photographic 3-colour composition from the Isaac Newton Telescope. 1  2 Description: The Horse Head Nebula. This dark dust nebula, in the shape of a horse's head, protrudes into a bright emission nebula, IC 434, in the constellation Orion. A nearby naked-eye star illuminates the surface of an otherwise invisible dusty cloud, exciting the distinctive red emission from hydrogen. From this dark cloud projects yet more dust, which has the shape of the head of a horse, seen in silhouette against the glowing background. Date: Image 1: 1999, Image 2: 1997. Credit: Image 1 is credit Simon Tulloch (ING) and Nik Szymanek (SPA). Image 2 is credit Peter Bunclark (IoA). Technical information: Image 1 is a 10s exposure using the 2-detector prime focus camera on the WHT. Image 2 is the same object as observed by the INT Wide Field Camera. Available formats: Image 1 JPEG (343 K) | PDF (with text).  Description: NGC 281 and IC 1590. NGC 281 is a busy workshop of star formation. Prominent features include a small open cluster of stars, a diffuse red-glowing emission nebula, large lanes of obscuring gas and dust, and dense knots of dust and gas in which stars may still be forming. PDF (with text). Date: 1992. Copyright: Malin-IAC-RGO. Technical information: This image is the result of combining 30 minute photographs taken at the INT prime focus in 3 different filters matching the standard B,V,R system. |
Globular ClustersGlobular clusters are gravitationally bound groups of many thousands (sometimes as many as a million) of stars. They consist primarily of very old stars. Globular clusters are not concentrated in the plane of the galaxy but rather randomly distributed throughout the halo. There are several hundred globular clusters associated with our galaxy.
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Open ClustersOpen clusters are physically related group of stars held together by mutual gravitational attraction. They are believed to originate from large cosmic gas and dust clouds in the Milky Way, and to continue to orbit the galaxy through the disk. In many clouds visible as bright diffuse nebulae, star formation takes still place at this moment, so that we can observe the formation of new young star clusters.
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Planetary NebulaePlanetary nebulae are shells of gas thrown out by some stars near the end of their lives. Our Sun will probably produce a planetary nebula in about 5 thousand million years. They have nothing at all to do with planets; the terminology was invented because they often look a little like planets in small telescopes. Planetary nebulae are formed in the process of mass loss during which red giant stars ultimately become white dwarfs.
 Title: Planetary Nebula NGC 7293 or Helix Nebula. Description: Image of the planetary nebula NGC 7293. Date: 2001. Credit: Romano Corradi (ING). Technical information: Image obtained with the Wide Field Camera at the 2.5m INT telescope. A narrow filter has been used to isolate the emission from the nebular gas in the hydrogen Halpha line (at wavelength 656 nm) and in the nitrogen doublet [NII] at lambda 655 and 658 nm. Available formats: JPEG (66 K) | TIFF (2936 K)  Title: Planetary Nebula NGC 3242. Description: Image of the planetary nebula NGC 3242. Date: 2001. Credit: Romano Corradi (ING). Technical information: Image obtained with the Wide Field Camera at the 2.5m INT telescope. A narrow filter has been used to isolate the emission from the nebular gas in the hydrogen Halpha line (at wavelength 656 nm) and in the nitrogen doublet [NII] at lambda 655 and 658 nm. Available formats: JPEG (316 K) | TIFF (13,175 K) 1  2 3 Title: Planetary Nebula Sh 2 - 200. Description: Image of the planetary nebula Sharpless 2-200. This is a very evolved planetary nebula, whose central star has already faded to a low luminosity after exhausting all circumnuclear fuel. Around the filamentary inner nebula, a large faint halo is observed. This halo might be interstellar gas ionized by the central star of the planetary nebula, or alternatively ancient material ejected by the star itself when it was a red giant some 50 to 100 thousand years ago. These haloes provide very precious information about the various events of strong mass loss at the end of life of solar type stars. These mass loss events are the ultimate cause leading to the death of these stars. Date: Image 1, 2, 3: 2001. Credit: Image 1: Romano Corradi (ING) and Nik Szymanek. Image 2: Romano Corradi (ING). Image 3: Romano Corradi (ING) and Nik Szymanek. Technical information: Images 1, 2 and 3 were obtained with the Wide Field Camera at the 2.5m INT telescope. A narrow filter has been used to isolate the emission from the nebular gas in the hydrogen Halpha line (at wavelength 656 nm) and in the nitrogen doublet [NII] at lambda 655 and 658 nm. Available formats: Image 1: JPEG (593 K) | TIFF (3,038 K) Image 2: JPEG (158 K) | TIFF (362 K) Image 3: JPEG (180 K) | TIFF (14,276 K)  Title: M 76 or NGC 650. The Little Dumbell Nebula. Description:M76 is among the fainter Messier objects. It is known under the names Little Dumbbell Nebula (the most common), Cork Nebula, Butterfly Nebula, and Barbell Nebula, and it was given two NGC numbers as it was suspected to be a double nebula with two components in contact, a hypothesis brought up by William Herschel, who numbered the "second component" H I.193 on November 12, 1787. NGC 651 is the North following (East) part of the nebula. Date: 25 November 2001. Credit: Thomas Hardy School. Technical information: Site2 CCD on Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope. 2*300 second exposures in Harris V, B and R filters. Available formats: JPEG (181 K) | TIFF (4097 K) 1  2 Description: NGC 6543, nicknamed the Cat's Eye Nebula, is one of the most complex of the planetary class nebula, stars that throw of spheres of gas at the end of their lives. It is located in the constellation Draco and is thought to have been created 1000 years ago by two stars orbiting each other. Date: Image 1: August 2001. Image 2: 2009. Credit: Image 1: Cornwall Astronomy School Project. Image 2: Daniel López and Rafael Barrena (IAC). Technical information: Image 1: This B, V, R image was taken using the Jacobus Kapteyn telescope and the SITe2 detector. Image 2: This image of the Cat's Eye Nebula or NGC 6543 was obtained using the Wide Field Camera on the Isaac Newton Telescope. It is a three-colour composite made from data collected using filters to isolate the light emitted by hydrogen alpha (H-alpha), doubly ionised oxygen (OIII) and ionised sulfur (SII) atoms, and coded in the image as red, green and blue respectively. More information. Available formats: Image 1: JPEG (93 K) | TIFF (2M). Image 2: JPEG | TIFF | PDF (with text) | PDF (poster with text). 1 
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Description: M57 planetary nebula, also known as the "Ring Nebula". The famous ring nebula M57 is often regarded as the prototype of a planetary nebula, and a showpiece in the northern hemisphere summer sky. Recent research has confirmed that it is, most probably, actually a ring (torus) of bright light-emitting material surrounding its central star, and not a spherical (or ellipsoidal) shell. Date: Image 1: 1999. Image 2: 1995. Image 3: 2009. Credit: Image 1: Daniel Folha and Simon Tulloch (ING). Image 2: ING Archive and Nik Szymanek. Image 3: Daniel López (IAC). Technical information: Image 1: This true-colour image was taken using the Jacobus Kapteyn telescope and the SITe2 detector. Image 2: Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope, Tek CCD, B, V and R filters. Image 3: Isaac Newton Telescope, Wide Field Camera. Filters: H-alpha, OIII and SII. More information. Available formats: Image 1: JPEG (49 K). Image 2: JPEG (59 K) | TIFF(11,746 K). Image 3: JPEG | TIFF | PDF (with text) | PDF (poster with text).  Description: NGC 3242 planetary nebula. The "Ghost of Jupiter" is a planetary nebula which has a nearly spherical outer shell with an elliptical inner ring that gives it the appearance of an "eye". In this image it's also possible to see the central illuminating star. Date: 2000. Credit: Javier Méndez (ING). Technical information: Image acquired with the Auxiliary Port Camera on the WHT, through filter R. Exposure time was 100 seconds. Available formats: GIF (92 K)  Decription: M2-9 planetary nebula. M2-9, a butterfly planetary nebula 2100 light-years away, has wings that tell a strange but incomplete tale. In the center, two stars orbit inside a gaseous disk 10 times the orbit of Pluto. The expelled envelope of the dying star breaks out from the disk creating the bipolar appearance. Date: 2000. Credit: Javier Méndez (ING). Technical information: Image acquired with the Auxiliary Port Camera on the WHT, through filter R. Exposure time was 100 seconds. Available formats: GIF (94 K) 1  2 3 Title: M27, NGC 6853, the Dumbell nebula. Description: The Dumbell nebula was the first planetary nebula ever discovered. We happen to see this one approximately from its equatorial plane; from near one pole, it would probably have the shape of a ring, and perhaps look like we view the Ring Nebula M57. Credit: Image 1: Copyright Malin-IAC-RGO. Image 2: Amanda Willmott, Aaron Shrimpton and Javier Méndez. Image 3: Amanda Willmott, Aaron Shrimpton, Javier Méndez and Nik Szymanek. Date: Image 1: 1992. Image 2: 2000. Image 3: 2000. Technical information: Image 1 1: Photographic 3-colour composition from the Isaac Newton Telescope. Image 2: True-colour composition from B, V, and R imaging using a CCD camera on the JKT. Image 3: Same as before but colour-processed by Nik Szymanek. Available formats: Image 1: PDF (with text). Image 2: JPEG (248 K) | Compressed TIFF (9,177 K). Image 3: JPEG (109 K) | TIFF (14,392 K)  Decription: The "Príncipes de Asturias" nebula or IPHAS PN-1. The discovery of the first new PN from the IPHAS survey is an unusual object located at a large galactocentric distance and has a very low oxygen abundance. The so-called "Príncipes de Asturias" nebula shows an intricate morphology: there is an inner ring surrounding the central star, bright inner lobes with an enhanced waist, and very faint lobular extensions reaching up to more than 100 arcseconds. Date: 2006. Credit: Credit: Antonio Mampaso, Romano Corradi and the IPHAS Collaboration. Technical information: Image acquired using the Wide-field Camera on the Isaac Newton Telescope. Available formats: JPEG | TIFF |
SupernovaeA supernova is a catastrophic stellar explosion in which so much energy is released that the supernova alone can outshine an entire galaxy of billions of stars. In addition to the radiant energy produced, ten times as much energy goes into the kinetic energy of the material blown out by the explosion, and a hundred times as much is carried off by neutrinos. Two distinct kinds of supernova are recognized, known as Type I and Type II. They are distinguished by the presence of hydrogen features in the spectrum of Type II supernovae, which are absent from Type I. Both types include other subclasses. Type Ia supernovae are thought to be white dwarfs in binary systems, where mass transfer from the companion takes place. A wave of carbon burning through the newly acquired material could account for the energy released. The explosion may represent the total disintegration of the white dwarf. Type II supernovae appear to be stars of eight solar masses or more that have run the course of stellar evolution and totally exhausted the nuclear fuel available in their cores. In the absence of energy generation, the pressure balancing the weight of the overlying layers is removed. When the crunch comes, the core collapses in less than a second and when the density of nuclear matter is reached, there is a sudden strong resistance to further pressure, the imploding material bounces back and an outward shock wave is generated. The outer layers of the star are blown outwards at thousands of kilometres per second, leaving the core exposed as a neutron star.
 Description:SN 1994I in galaxy M51. SN 1994I was type Ic. Date: 1994. Credit: Javier Méndez (ING). Technical information: Image acquired using a CCD camera on the Jacobus Kapteyn Telescopes. Available formats: GIF (49 K)  Description: Supernova 2001dc. This is a sub-luminous type IIp supernova. The supernova is situated within the galaxy to the top right, the first bright spot in the North-East direction from the nucleus. Date: 2001. Credit: Daniel Bramich (ING). Technical information: BVR CCD composite. Images from the CCD camera on the Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope. Available formats: JPEG (86 K) |
Supernova RemnantsA supernova remnant is the expanding shell of material created by the ejection of the outer layers of a star that explodes as a supernova. A shock wave precedes the ejected shell, colliding with and heating the interstellar gas. The ejected material breaks up into clumps, so the radiation emitted from the shell often does not make up a uniform ring. Remnants are tipically at most few light-years across.
1  2 Description: NGC 6995 and NGC6992, part of the Cygnus Loop. The Cygnus Loop is the remnant of a type II supernova. For a few days the supernova emitted as much energy as a whole galaxy. When it was all over, a large fraction of the star was blown into space as a supernova remnant, which it's typical at most few light-years across. Date: Image 1: 1992. Image 2: 2009. Credit: Image 1: Malin-IAC-RGO (copyright). Image 2: Daniel López (IAC). Technical information: Image 1: Photographic 3-colour composition from the Isaac Newton Telescope. More information. Image 2: This image is part of the Eastern Veil Nebula, or NGC 6992, and it was obtained using the Wide Field Camera on the Isaac Newton Telescope. It is a three-colour composite made from data collected using filters to isolate the light emitted by hydrogen alpha (H-alpha), doubly ionised oxygen (OIII) and ionised sulfur (SII) atoms, and coded in the image as red, green and blue respectively. More information. Available formats: Image 2: JPG | TIFF | PDF (with text) | PDF (poster with text) 1  2 Title: M1, the Crab Nebula. Description: M1, the Crab Nebula. Credit: Image 1: Peter Sorensen and Nik Szymanek. Image 2: ING archive and Nik Szymanek. Date: Image 1: 02/01/2001. Image 2: 1995. Technical information: Image 1: H-alpha, OIII and HeII images taken using the Wide Field Camera on the Isaac Newton Telescope. 1200s per filter. Image 2: Tek CCD detector on Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope. Filters B, V and R. Available formats: Image 1: JPEG (84 K) | TIFF (14,994 K) Image 2: JPEG (125 K) | TIFF (11,953 K) |
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