Planetary Nebula HFG1 in Cassiopeia | Mayall Telescope

Planetary Nebula HFG1 in Cassiopeia | Mayall Telescope

This image was obtained with the wide-field view of the Mosaic camera on the 4-meter Mayall telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona. HFG1 is a planetary nebula in the constellation of Cassiopeia. It was produced by a binary star system (V664 Cas) that is moving rapidly through our Galaxy. The star is moving towards the upper-right of the image. As HFG1 plows through the interstellar medium, a bluish bowshock is produced; and a red trail of gas is left behind in its wake. The image was generated with observations in the Hydrogen alpha (red) and Oxygen [OIII] (blue) filters. In this image, North is down and East is to the right.

Distance: ~3,100 light years

The Nicholas U. Mayall Telescope is a four-meter (158 inches) reflector telescope in Arizona named after Nicholas U. Mayall. It saw first light on February 27, 1973, and was the second-largest telescope in the world at that time.

Credit: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) and H. Schweiker (WIYN and NOIRLab/National Science Foundation (NSF)/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy)

Release Date: June 30, 2020

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