Messier 97 (M97), commonly known as the Owl Nebula, is a planetary nebula located approximately 2,030 light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. It is one of the most famous planetary nebulae in the night sky, named for its two dark circular patches that resemble the eyes of an owl when viewed through a telescope. It consists of three concentric shells. The “eyes” are actually regions of lower density in the inner shell, which is shaped like a barrel tilted at a 45° angle to our line of sight.
This photograph consists of 156 4 minute exposures taken in March and April of 2026 from my driveway here in the hills of western North Carolina. The telescope used is the GSO RC8. The camera is the ASI071MC Pro. The mount is the Skywatcher EQ6r Pro. Software used includes APT for image acquisitions, PHD2 for guiding and PixInsight for subframe calibration, alignment, integration, and processing.
Astrobin link for the details.
