Messier 1 (M 1), the Crab Nebula, is a really beautiful cosmic structure. Its unique aspect is that it was the first astronomical object recognized as being connected to a supernova explosion.
In the early twentieth century, scientists analyzed early photographs of the nebula taken several years apart. The analysis revealed that it was expanding. Tracing the expansion back revealed that the nebula must have become visible on Earth about 900 years before. Historical records revealed the original supernova was extremely bright. Chinese astronomers recorded it in 1054 AD as a “guest star.” It was visible in the daytime for several weeks and at night for nearly two years.
At its center is a rapidly spinning neutron star, or pulsar (the Crab Pulsar). It rotates about 30 times per second. This rotation powers the nebula’s intense radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum.
With an apparent magnitude of 8.4, the Crab Nebula is not visible to the naked eye. It can be spotted with binoculars or a small telescope. It appears as a faint, oval patch of light. This is best viewed during winter months in the Northern Hemisphere. You need larger telescopes to discern the intricate details. Long-exposure astrophotography reveals the filamentary structure that gives the nebula its name.
This image consists of 331 subframes, or 18 hours of 3 min exposures. These were taken from my driveway with a RC8 telescope at 1625mm fl @ f8. I used an ASI071MC camera cooled to 15f. This setup involved a Radian Ultra quad-band narrow-band filter. APT was used for image acqusition and session automation. Pixinsight was used to calibrate, integrate, and process the image. Link for acquisition details and annotated image.
I learned of this a very long time ago in school. I think it’s just awesome that I took a photograph of it 50 years later. It exists out there in space, about 6,500 light years from earth!
