Ha-RGB Image

NGC 6960 is the western segment of the Great Cygnus Loop, a remnant of a supernova explosion estimated to have occurred 5000 to 8000 years ago.  It was discovered by William Herschel in 1784 with his 18 inch reflector telescope.  Although sometimes referred to as the Network Nebula as well as the filamentary nebula, the entire complex is best known as the Cirrus Nebula or simply the Veil Nebula.  the western portion passing through the bright Star 52 Cygni carries the popular designation of the “Witches Broom” Nebula for its obvious Similarity to a spooky riderless Broom.

Delicate in appearance, the filaments of shocked, glowing gas make up the western part of the Veil Nebula. The expanding cloud born of the death explosion of a massive star continues to spread outward from the Epicenter of this Supernova. Light from the original supernova explosion likely reached Earth over 5,000 years ago. Blasted out in the cataclysmic event, the interstellar shock wave plows through space sweeping up and exciting interstellar material. The glowing filaments are really more like long ripples in a sheet seen almost edge on, remarkably well separated into atomic hydrogen (red) and oxygen (blue-green) gas.

Imaging Data

Date: 7-22-2012 for RGB, 9-5-14 for Ha Data

Location : Sudbury, Massachusetts

Optics : Televue-85 with .8X Reducer-Flattener

Filter(s) : Astronomik CLS-CCD and Astronomik 12nm Ha

Mount : Astrophysics Mach-1 GTO

Autoguiding : CoSTAR through Stellarvue 60mm Finderscope and PHD Guiding Software

Camera : Canon EOS 1000D Astro-modified

Exposure info : 45 x 210 sec @ISO 800 RGB Data

                           23 x 240 sec at ISO 1600 HA Data

Total Exposure : 3.4 Hours ( 1.53 hours HA + 1.88 hours RGB)

Processing:  Pixinsight

Ha Image

RGB Image