Our Photo of the Week for July 9, 2021 is Dave Dev’s “subtle and potent” image of the Veil Nebula.
Located in the constellation Cygnus, the Veil Nebula is a supernova remnant, the source star of which is estimated to have erupted between 10,000 and 20,000 years ago, and it has been expanding ever since. The nebula, the visible portions of the Cygnus Loop, includes individually-named portions, such as the Bat Nebula and Eastern Veil Nebula on the right, the Western Veil Nebula on the left, and Pickering’s Triangle at the bottom.
Dev’s narrowband image, using the SHO palette, was taken from Woodbridge, Ontario. He said he collected seven hours of data around June 26, 2021, using a SharpStar 76mm APO telescope (f/4.5) and a ZWO ASI1600 mono camera.
“Although the colours are a little unusual, I like the presentation,” said one of the judges. “To me, it is more subtle and potent than the more typical Veil.”
Our runner up this week is a stunning image of NGC 4725 by Ron Brecher.
“NGC 4725 is the large galaxy in the centre of the image,” Brecher wrote. “It appears to have only one main spiral arm; this is due to distortion caused by interactions with other galaxies. NGC 4275 lies about 40 million light years away and is the largest member of the Coma I galaxy group. It is flanked by NGC 4712 to the right, and NGC 4747 near top left. Many other distant galaxies litter the field.”
Brecher also prepared an annotated image, available on his website, that identifies some of the other galaxies.
He said this is one of the first images made using his new QHY600M camera on my Sky-Watcher Esprit 150 f/7 refractor.
“Acquisition, focusing, and control of Paramount MX mount with N.I.N.A., TheSkyX and PHD2,” he writes on his website. “Focus with Optec DirectSync motor and controller. Equipment control with PrimaLuce Labs Eagle 3 Pro computer. All pre-processing and processing in PixInsight. Acquired from my SkyShed in Guelph. Average transparency and seeing. Data acquired May 10-13, 2021 in a nearly moonless sky.”
