About this Object:
The Crab Nebula (catalogue designations M1, NGC 1952, Taurus A) is a supernova remnant and pulsar wind nebula in the constellation of Taurus. The nebula corresponds to a bright supernova recorded by Chinese and Arab astronomers in 1054. Located at a distance of about 6,500 light-years from Earth, the nebula has a diameter of 11 light years and expands at a rate of about 1,500 kilometers per second. At the center of the nebula lies the Crab Pulsar, a neutron star (or spinning ball of neutrons), twelve miles across, which emits pulses of radiation from gamma rays to radio waves with a spin rate of 30.2 times per second. The nebula was the first astronomical object identified with a historical supernova explosion.

About this Photo:

Location: From my driveway in Georgetown, Texas
Telescope: Celestron C9.25 @ F6.3
Mount: HEQ-5
Guiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider / Orion ST80
Camera: Canon 40D Modified
Exposure: 76 x 180 sec @ ISO 1600 (3 hrs 15 min.)
Acquisition: ImagesPlus 3.75 Camera Control
Processing: ImagesPlus 3.75 – Darks,Flats,Bias
Post-processing: Adobe Photoshop CS3; Gradient Exterminator; Noise Ninja; Noel Carboni's Tools;
Date(s): January 9, 2010
Temperature(s): 30-20º F