M76 image by by Scott J. Wolk and Nancy R. Adams. The data were taken at the 48" at the Fred Lawerence Whipple Observatory in Mt. Hopkins, Arizona, on 12/30/96. This CCD image is a composite of two images in narrow band filters; a Hydrogen alpha filter and a Sulphur II [SII] filter. The integration times were 450 seconds each. For the tricoloring proceedure, the [SII] filter was used for both the green and blue images.
KPNO image of M76, taken by George Jacoby.
This is a very typical sort of planetary nebula of the "Butterfly" shape variety. Many nebulae are thought to look like this, having 2 lobes (the wings) and a central dense disk.
Messier 76 (NGC 650), the "Little Dumbbell" planetary nebula in Perseus, shown in an R-band CCD image taken with the 1.1-meter Hall telescope at Lowell Observatory. This image emphasizes H-alpha emission; note both the bipolar inner structure and the faint outer loops of ionized gas. Credit: Bill Keel, University of Alabama.
Last Modification: June 27, 1999