There may not be a more challenging subject matter for photographers than astrophotography, but it was something that I have been interested in for many years but it wasn't until I retired that I decided to give it a serious go...or forget it!!!
The Tulip Nebula, Sh2-101, is located in the constellation of Cygnus within a complex area of nebulosity , and within a couple of degrees southwest of NGC6888, the Crescent Nebula. This area is strong in Ha and SII emissions, and is located about 2,000 light years away from us. Sh2-101 lies inside the Orion spiral arm of our galaxy, as does our own solar system. The star believed to be fueling the emissions of the Tulip nebula is HDE 227018.
This image also shows the famous Cygnus X-1 system, which is the brightest source of X-rays. It is a binary system, consisting of HDE 226868, a large blue super giant, and a companion that is thought to be a Black hole, the more compact of the two objects in the system is thought to be between 20 and 35 solar masses.
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