Object/s: NGC6888, PN G75.5+1.7, Crescent Nebula, Soap Bubble Nebula

NGC 6888, also known as the Crescent Nebula, is a about 25 light-years across blown by winds from its central, bright, massive star. My telescopic photon collection has over 4 hours of narrow band image data isolating light from hydrogen and oxygen atoms. The oxygen atoms produce the blue-green hue that seems to enshroud the detailed folds and filaments. Visible within the nebula, NGC 6888’s central star is classified as a Wolf-Rayet star (WR 136). The star is shedding its outer envelope in a strong stellar wind, ejecting the equivalent of the Sun’s mass every 10,000 years. The nebula’s complex structures are likely the result of this strong wind interacting with material ejected in an earlier phase. Burning fuel at a prodigious rate and near the end of its stellar life this star should ultimately go out with a bang in a spectacular supernova explosion. Found in the nebula rich constellation Cygnus, NGC 6888 is about 5,000 light-years away.

Rights Statement: Copyright, Julio Encarnacion, 2022

Acquisition Dates: 06/22/22; 06/23/22

Published Date: June 24, 2022

Location: Driveway, Land o Lakes, Florida.

Optics: Takahashi FSQ-85EDX f/5.3 Petzval Refracting Telescope

Mount: Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro

Camera: ZWO ASI2600MM Pro (mono)