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Astrophoto: The Crescent Nebula & Wolf Rayet Star by John Chumack

NGC6888 The Crescent Nebula & Wolf Rayet Star (WR136). Credit: John Chumack.

Here’s an impressive shot of NGC 6888, also known as the Crescent Nebula, which is a cosmic bubble about 25 light-years across. It is part of the massive Gamma Cygni Nebula region, and in the center is a powerful, bright and massive Wolf-Rayet star. “The very energetic Wolf-Rayet star is shedding its outer envelope in a strong stellar wind, ejecting the equivalent of the Sun’s mass every 10,000 years,” explains prolific and talented astrophotographer John Chumack. “This cosmic bubble is located in this very rich star studded field, which is about 3,000 light years away.”

To capture this image, John used a QHY8 cooled Color CCD Camera and his homemade 16″ Newtonian Scope, with a 90 minute exposure, taken on August 24, 2012 at his observatory in Yellow Springs, Ohio. See more of his work at his website, Galactic Images.

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