M27, the Dumbbell Nebula, is a planetary nebula located 400 pc (1,400 light-years) away in the constellation of Vulpecula. It was the first planetary nebula ever discovered, in 1764. The gas shell that makes up the nebula was ejected from its host star about 10,000 years ago, and is expanding outwards at a rate of about 30 km per second (70,000 miles per hour!). A planetary nebula forms when a star like our sun evolves first to a red giant phase, and then to a white dwarf, shedding its outer layers. The central star is visible in this image as the white dot in the center of the nebula; it is the largest white dwarf known. This exposure was made as part of the recommissioning of the LMI "engineering" grade CCD on Aug 28, 2016, and provided an end-to-end test of the telescope system. This picture is a composite of 20 1-minute exposures in B, 20 1-minute. exposures in V, and 20 1-minute exposures in R, and was obtained in exquisite seeing (0.6 arcsec). Minimal image credit: Massey / Neugent / Lowell Obs. / NSF. Details:4" x 6.5"Blank, non-lined pages
