ROAST ::

Another clear night, another perfect equatorial alignment, and another hard target — this time because it’s so small:

Click for bigger. This is M57, the Ring Nebula in Lyra, a constellation becoming more visible as summer approaches. It’s a planetary nebula, formed when a star heading towards the end of its life throws off some of its atmosphere prior to becoming a white dwarf. The image has been lightly processed in PhotoDesk, and has been x2 enlarged. 110 shots with two failures (satellites), 30-second exposures, gain 60 and Duo-Band filter.

And to take advantage of the clear sky, here’s another go at Bode’s Galaxy:

145 shots with one failure (satellite), 60-second exposures, gain 60 and Astro filter.