M57 The Ring Nebula (Close-up of a dying star) 07-03-2022

M57 The Ring Nebula (Close-up of a dying star)
The Ring Nebula is one of the most famous Planetary Nebulae and is a classic example of a dying star.
The central star has blown off its outer atmosphere and the UV light energizes the gases to make this one of the brightest planetary nebulae in the sky.
Such a nebula is formed when a star, during the last stages of its evolution before becoming a white dwarf, expels a vast luminous envelope of ionized gas into the surrounding interstellar space.
Located in the constellation of Lyra, it is very easy to see with even the smallest of telescopes.
M57 shines at magnitude 8.8 and visually it is a delight, and we see it quite well in most telescopes with a little magnification as a smoke ring or Cheerio in the sky. its diameter is 2.6 light years and is located 2,283 light years from Earth.
Note the blue central star, it shines at magnitude 15, and several other faint background stars are visible.
Celestron C-11 SCT Telescope at F10, Bisque MyT Mount, ZWO ASI Air, ZWO 224MC uncooled Color Camera(OSC), no NB filters, just Visible light.
I captured 142 x 20 sec subs exposures for a total of 47.3 minutes total integration time. No auto-guiding, just dithering to help remove noise as my ambient temp was 32C.
Calibrated and Stacked in Nebulosity, Adobe RAW CS 2022.
Captured from my backyard Observatory in Dayton, Ohio on 07-03-2022.
I was surprised it came out OK with all the Smoke from the fireworks going off in my bortle 8 neighborhood this holiday weekend.

Best Regards,

John Chumack