Abell 39, PN G047.0+42.4 (Spring 2013)

 Full resolution image here.

This is Abell 39, a planetary nebula in the constellation Hercules.  The nebula fascinates because it is almost perfectly spherical.  Like all planetary nebulae, Abell 39 is the remains of a dying star.  The dying star is the central star within the nebula.  The sphere glows primarily in the light of oxygen excited by the radiation from the central star.  Here is a close crop of the nebula:

 Telescope: Astro-Tech AT111EDT and William Optics AFR-IV (eff. at f/5.6)
Camera and Exposure: SXVF-H9 (OIII: 31x1200" and combined in RGB with R (14x300"), G (15x300" + 90% OIII), B (15x300" + 20% OIII)), Alnitak Flat-man flats
Filter: Astronomik RGB & OIII
Guiding: SX Lodestar and SX OAG
Mount: Takahashi NJP
Software: Nebulosity, Maxim DL, Photoshop CS3 (one Carboni action), Registar
Location: The Woodlands, TX

NGC 2244 & the Rosette Nebula Center, Bi-Color (Dec. & Jan, 2012-13)

Link to full resolution image.

Here is my recent NGC 2244 and Rosette data arranged as a bi-color.  In this rendition, I have mixed the Ha [+NII] data with SII at a 2:1 ratio.  These wavelengths, which fall in the red part of the spectrum, became Red.  Blue in this image comprises OIII and Ha data mixed at 4:1, and Green comprises OIII and SII data mixed at 4:1.  The color strengths were adjusted after combination to emphasize the difference between red and blue, so the contrast visible here is between Ha, NII, and SII, on the one hand, and OIII on the other, red v. blue-green.  Capture data for this image appears in the Hubble palette post for this object, dated February 4, 2013.  The telescope used was the AT111EDT, the camera the SXVF-H9.