Astrophotography by Anthony Ayiomamitis

Nebulae Image Gallery

Nebulae represent clouds of gas and dust which appear as hazy or fuzzy objects when viewed through a telescope and are characterized as one of four types (emission, planetary, reflection or dark). Emission nebulae, such as the Lagoon nebula (M8), simply glow, for example, with a stunning shade of red. Planetary nebulae appear as small greenish disks through a telescope, thus emulating the planets Uranus and Neptune, as a result of gas masses being thrown off by dying stars (ex. M27, Dumbbell nebula) or represent supernova remnants (ex. M1, Crab nebula). In contrast, reflection nebulae are characterized with gas surrounding young stars which reflect the stellar light (ex. M45, Pleiades) and, thus, yield beautiful images of nebulosity. Finally, dark nebulae are detectable and studied only using parts other than the visible spectrum and are believed to be associated with the formation of stars (ex. M16 in Serpens).

To enter a particular nebula image gallery, please click on the corresponding hyperlink under "Category".

Category Sample Images
Barnard
Dark Nebula

B33 in Ori

B72 in Oph

B85 in Sag

B86 in Sag

B92-B93 in Sag

B133 in Aql

B143 in Aql

B159 in Cyg

B343 in Cyg

B352 in Cyg
Emission
Nebula

NGC 7000 in Cyg

IC 5070 in Cyg

M16 in Ser

M17 in Sgr

NGC 6888 in Cyg

IC 5146 in Cyg

NGC 7822 in Cep
Reflection
Nebula

NGC 1435 in Tau

M78 in Ori

NGC 1432 in Tau

NGC 1977 in Ori

M45 in Tau

NGC 7023 in Cep

NGC 7129 in Cep
Planetary
Nebula

Abell 12 in Ori

Abell 21 in Gem

Abell 39 in Her

Abell 71 in Cyg

Abell 74 in Vul

M27 in Vul

M76 in Per

Sh2-176 in Cas

Campbell's Hydrogen Star

NGC 2438 in Pup
Herbig-Haro

HH 01

HH 15

HH 34

HH 167 in Cep

HH 215 in Cep
Sharpless

Sh 2-117 in Cyg

Sh 2-142 in Cep

Sh 2-157 in Cas

Sh 2-184 in Cas

Sh 2-101 in Cyg

Sh 2-112 in Cyg

Sh 2-131 in Cep

Sh 2-132 in Cep

Sh 2-155 in Cep
Supernova
Remnants

CTB 1 in Cas

Sh2-96 in Cyg

NGC 6960 in Cyg

NGC 6974 in Cyg

Sim 3-188 in Cyg

NGC 6992 in Cyg

NGC 6995 in Cyg
van den Bergh
Nebulae

vdB 21 in Tau

vdB 131 in Cyg

vdB 139 in Cep

vdB 142 in Cep

vdB 146 in Cep
Wolf-Rayet
Bubbles

WR 007

BD+602522 in Cas

WR 128 in Sge

WR 136 in Cyg

WR 153 in Cep