Monday, June 27, 2011

M20 - Trifid Nebula

(Click image to go to info page)

The Trifid Nebula is a large, bright nebula and open cluster located in the constellation Sagittarius. It consists of four bright lobes separated by dark lanes of obscuring matter. As seen in the photo above and in the full-frame photo found here, M20 is located in a densely populated region of the Milky Way. At a magnitude of 5.9 and a distance of approximately 5000 light-years, the Trifid was first observed by Charles Messier in 1764. [Source: O'Meara, Stephen James. "The Messier Objects". Cambridge: University of Cambridge and Sky Publishing, 1998. Print.]

The data for this LRGB photo was captured between 3 June and 5 June 2011. All images were taken at the Chiefland Astronomy Village in Chiefland, Florida. Complete details regarding this image can be found by clicking on the image above or by clicking here.

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