The Owl Nebula and the Windsurf Galaxy, M97 and M108
The Owl Nebula (M97) and the Windsurf Galaxy (M108) are two distinct deep-sky objects located in the constellation Ursa Major, near the star Merak in the Big Dipper. This image captures both objects in the same field of view, showcasing their contrasting nature and structure.
The Owl Nebula (M97)
M97, also known as the Owl Nebula, is a planetary nebula located approximately 2,030 light-years from Earth. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781 and later cataloged by Charles Messier. The nebula earned its name due to the two dark regions that resemble an owl's eyes when viewed through larger telescopes.
The Owl Nebula formed when a dying star, similar in mass to our Sun, expelled its outer layers into space. The central star, now a white dwarf with a temperature of about 85,000 K, emits intense ultraviolet radiation that causes the surrounding gas to fluoresce. The nebula's distinctive greenish-blue color in this image comes primarily from the G and B filters, with additional structural detail enhanced by the OIII narrowband data.
The Windsurf Galaxy (M108)
M108, sometimes called the Surfboard Galaxy or Windsurf Galaxy, is a barred spiral galaxy located about 45 million light-years from Earth. It was also discovered by Pierre Méchain in 17811. M108 is seen nearly
The galaxy is actively forming stars, particularly in its spiral arms, and contains numerous HII regions. M108 is classified as a type SBbc galaxy in the Hubble sequence, indicating it has a barred spiral structure with moderately wound arms.
Imaging & Processing
This dataset was acquired over two nights in February and March 2025, with a total integration time of 4 hours and 36 minutes under Bortle 8 skies in London. The image combines LRGB data for natural color rendition with OIII narrowband data to enhance the structure of the Owl Nebula.
Additional deep OIII signal is currently being collected to reveal the extensive outer halo of the Owl Nebula, which will be featured in a future revision of this image.
Technical Details
- Target: M97 (Owl Nebula) and M108 (Windsurf Galaxy)
- Constellation: Ursa Major
- Distance: ~2,030 light-years (M97) and ~45 million light-years (M108)
- Exposure Time: 4h 36m (collected over 2 nights in 2025)
- Imaging Location: Bortle 8 (urban) skies in London