M97

M97 in Ursa Major is a planetary nebula often called the Owl. Its complexity stems from our point of view, being a cylindrical torus of gas viewed obliquely. The 'eyes' of the owl are believed to be the ends of the cylinder which contain less mass than the rest of the nebula. Its distance is not well known and estimates range from 1300 light years to about 12,000 light years. The magnitude of M97 is very near 10th but most of its visual light is radiated in one narrow green portion of the spectrum and thus the object is difficult to photograph. The central star is about 16th magnitude and the age of M97 is about 6,000 years.

Image taken during January, 2006, with the 402 camera on the C-14. Exposure information not recorded.