Credit: Lloyd Smith/Warren Keller
Lady Liberty
The Statue of Liberty Nebula (NGC 3576) in Carina glows with intricate ribbons and pillars of gas and dust shaped by powerful stellar winds and radiation from young, massive stars. The imagers used a 6-inch f/7.3 refractor to take 26.5 hours of data in the Hubble palette. · Lloyd Smith/Warren Keller
Fireworks and smoke
The Fireworks Galaxy (NGC 6946) earns its name by being a prolific producer of supernovae — roughly one a decade over the past century. It straddles constellations Cepheus and Cygnus at a distance of around 20 million light-years. This shot also captures foreground wisps of gas and dust that lie in the Milky Way. The imager took 4.8 hours of exposure with a 5-inch f/7 scope and a one-shot color camera. · Blair MacDonald
