M16

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SERPENS CAUDA - EMISSION NEBULA & CLUSTER - MAGNITUDE 6.0

M16 - THE EAGLE NEBULA in SERPENS CAUDA

About this Object:

The Eagle Nebula, M16, inspires us like perhaps no other object in the sky. Perhaps it's because of the beautiful representation of its namesake, the Eagle. But more than that, it's a spectacular representation of creation in real-time. The hot emission nebula is the birthplace of many hot, new stars. And it's this aspect of M16 that is captured in the famous Hubble shot entitled "Pillars of Creation." While this image is simply a grayscale version, its beauty speaks for itself.

Visually speaking, M16 is a relatively easy object to see in dark skies. In fact, it will appear as a bright patch to the naked eye amidst the surrounding summer Milky Way. However, the pillars themselves are a little more difficult to see. Regardless, it is in one of the heaven's most exciting regions of the sky, and this image merely hints as to its true grandeur!

For a color version of this object, click <here>.

Location: Ballauer Observatory near Azle, Texas
Date: June 28, 2005
Seeing: 9/10
Transparency: 4/10
Temperature: 72 degrees F
Scope/Mount: 12.5" RCOS RC and Paramount ME
Camera: SBIG STL-6303e astro CCD camera
Filter: Custom Scientific 4.5nm Hydrogen-alpha filter
Exposure Info: Grayscale image; 60 minutes H-alpha filtered image (20 minute subexposures all unbinned)
Processing Information: Calibration, Registration, and DDP in MaxIm DL 4. Levels/curves, sharpening, and noise removal in Photoshop CS.

Exposure Notes: Taken in the brightest part of the sky, towards the light dome.