The Flaming Skull
The “Flaming Skull Nebula” (SH2-68) is an old, dim planetary nebula that’s about 40,000 years old. What makes it unique is its structure; it is the fastest-moving planetary nebula measured, and as it moves through the intersteller medium, its gases are getting mixed into the galaxy – leaving a trail behind.
Not to brag, but this is one of the most detailed images of this object I can find. The primary image here is in the Hubble SHO palette, but with the Hydrogen knocked down just to make it less green for aesthetic reasons. The straight-up version without any artistic tinkering follows, and then an HOO palette that’s closer to its true colors – but which loses those really interesting red Sulphur details in the SHO takes.
40+ hours of narrowband nebula exposure, plus RGB stars.
