Not Jupiter - The Dumbbell Nebula (M27)

This is my first Jupiter-free update in a while. This pic is of a planetary nebula, a dying star, in the summer constellation Vulpecula. It's called the Dumbbell Nebula but I think it looks more like a Bowtie Nebula. It's object #27 on Messier's list.

I took this picture with my 100mm refractor, the color data is from an image I took a few years ago with my DSLR, and the brightness (luminosity) was captured last month with my ST-402, a highly sensitive monochrome camera. I combined the two images in Photoshop. You can click on the pic to get a slightly larger version.

Telescope Comparison

I finished processing my data from the 12th last night. I had both the 9.25" and the 18" scope out that night , here's a comparison of how Jupiter turned out in each.

Jupiter - Oct 17th

Quick Jupiter from the 17th. The jet stream was right overhead that night so I scaled the magnification back a bit.

Jupiter - Oct 12th

My parents were able to peek at Jupiter on Tuesday night through the big scope, they seemed impressed. The seeing was good that evening, and I was able to capture this image. The moon Ganymede is just about to disappear behind Jupiter. Click for the full version.

Jupiter - Oct 10th

Here is Jupiter from last night. Just a quick process, I might go over this again later to see if I can get a little more detail. It was pretty hazy and it seems to have thrown the color off.

Jupiter on September 20th

Here's Jupiter from the night of September 20th. Seeing wasn't great but I think it turned out OK.

August 28th

Here's Jupiter from the morning of August 28th. The Great Red Spot was getting ready to rotate out of view when I snapped this pic.