Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Ursa Major (UMa)  ·  Contains:  M 97  ·  NGC 3587  ·  Owl Nebula
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M97 - The Owl Nebula, JGB Imaging
M97 - The Owl Nebula
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M97 - The Owl Nebula

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M97 - The Owl Nebula, JGB Imaging
M97 - The Owl Nebula
Powered byPixInsight

M97 - The Owl Nebula

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Description

The Owl nebula is a planetary nebula in the constellation of Ursa Major.  It is 2,030 light years distant from earth.

The nebula is 1.82 light years across.  The red in the image are emissions from the hydrogen in the shell of the nebula that is being energized by the white dwarf star at the center of the nebula.  The teal color is the oxygen in the shell, likewise being energized by the white dwarf.

The white dwarf itself is clearly visible in the center of the nebula.  

The 2 dark areas within the nebula are areas where dark dust has been pushed out along 2 jets emanating  from the poles of the star.

The star that produced this image was like the Sun, and reached the end of its life.  This is our future in about 2 billion years...

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  • M97 - The Owl Nebula, JGB Imaging
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    M97 - The Owl Nebula, JGB Imaging
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M97 - The Owl Nebula, JGB Imaging