Initially Undesignated Nebula
Designated by the IAU as PN G75.5+1.7
To see APOD version (November 13, 2008) please click here
Joint Project by Keith B Quattrocchi and Mel Helm
"Soap Bubble Nebula"
Faint Bubble Nebula in Cygnus
Narrow Band Image
Now designated by the IAU as PN G75.5+1.7 (see below)
UPDATE:
The IAU issued an electronic telegram
regarding the discovery status and official designation
of this object (July 16, 2009).
The IAU notes that the object was previously unrecognized.
It is now designated PN G75.5+1.7
Also known as The Soap Bubble Nebula
Click here to read the telegram
Image Acquisition Information
Telescope: 16" RCOS Ritchey Chretien Telescope (ion milled at f/9)
Camera: SBIG STL-6303 M
Guiding: SBIG AOL, Astrodon MOAG AOG (SBIG 237 with FLR)
Filters: Astrodon Ha, SII, OIII
Mount: Software Bisque Paramount ME
Acquisition Programs: The Sky,CCDAutopliot III, CCD Soft.
Processing Programs: CCDStack, Maxim DL, Adobe Photoshop CS/3
Date: July 30-August 3, 2008
Time: 21 x20 min ( 7 hours) for each of Ha, SII, OIII
Total of 21 hours imaging time.
Processing: CCD Stack and PhotoShop CS/3
Image Information: Life can be stranger than fiction. This nebula was first imaged by Dave Jurasevich (of the Mt Wilson Observatory) on July 6, 2008 and submitted by him to the IAU on July 10, 2008. On July 17th, about 10 days after Dave's then unpublished observation, Mel Helm and I submitted the same finding. The IAU listed Dave Jurasevitch as the discoverer and noted the independent observation ("noted and observed") by Mel helm and myself (Keith Quattrocchi) a week later. You can learn about Dave's observations work at www.starimager.com and about his initial discovery of this nebula at http://tinyurl.com/5q4qnu .
Processing Information: The image is a layered Hubble Palette narrrow band image assembled in CCDStack. The first layer contained nothing under the "Luminance channel", whereas the second contained the Ha data under the luminace channel (which highlights the fine Ha nebulosity data). These two layers were combined with the layers option in Photoshop CS/3, optimizing the best characteristics of each layer. Further processing was accomplished in Photoshop CS/3 (curves and levels, shadows/highlights, high pass filtering).
Commentary
When Mel and I first imaged this object we suspected it to be either: 1) An unusually symmetrical planetary nebula, ie, a small dying star throwing off it's atmosphere as it becomes a white dwarf (such as Abell 39) or 2) A Wolf-Rayet Nebula, such as the Crescent Nebula or The Bubble Nebula (NGC 7635). These are formed by massive stellar winds from a "Wolf-Rayet" star . Wolf-Rayet stars are believed to be normal, evolved massive stars with massive stellar winds. These stellar winds evidently form when the CNO cycle is active, and the stars spectrum is dominated by ionized Helium and Nitrogen.
The following links are also available:
1) For details regarding how this "Bubble-Like" Nebula was first found, you can go to the following link for more information:
Summary/Review of the Undesignated Nebula in Cygnus
2) The approximate coordinates of this "Bubble-Like" Nebula are
RA: 20 15 22.16 and Dec +38 02 41.9.
To see the location of this object, in relation to the Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888 or Caldwell 27), please follow the following link:
Original images: Location of the Undesignated "Bubble-Like" Nebula
3) A few weeks after Dave Jurasevich submitted his image tot he IAU (as apparntly the first to identify the object), we also submitted it to the IAU. This link takes you to a page where we respond to their questions. The link is: http://www.lostvalleyobservatory.com/iaupncyg
Processing Information: The image is a layered Hubble Palette narrrow band image assembled in CCDStack. The first layer contained nothing under the "Luminance channel", whereas the second contained the Ha data under the luminace channel (which highlights the fine Ha nebulosity data). These two layers were combined with the layers option in Photoshop CS/3, optimizing the best characteristics of each layer. Further processing was accomplished in Photoshop CS/3 (curves and levels, shadows/highlights, high pass filtering).