Messier 57 is a planetary nebula, which can be located in constellation Lyra, not far from well-known star Vega. The name planetary nebula has nothing to do with a planet, because in a small telescope it can look like a Jupiter, but in the reality it was a star, similar to our Sun. At the end of its life, when the fuel was consumed, the star inflated and ejected the material away. The nebula, as we see it today is illuminated by the white dwarf in the middle.
Technical details:
Telescope: | RC 154/1370 |
Aperture: | 154 mm |
Focal length: | 917 mm |
Mount | iOptron CEM25P |
Autoguiding | QHYCCD miniGuideScope 130 mm f/4.3, ZWO 174 MM |
Camera: | ZWO 1600 MC @ -15C |
Corrector: | Astro Physics CCDT67 |
Filters: | UV, IR cut |
Exposure: | 31x 120s Gain 139 |
Date: | 2017-08-13 |