The Crescent Nebula

Crescent nebula is a emission nebula in the constellation Cygnus at 5000 light years away from us. It is about 25 light-years across.

It is a rather faint object located about 2 degrees SW of Sadr. This object is a fascinating bubble of gas being carved out of the interstellar medium by the winds of an intensely hot star named WR 136. As this high-velocity wind hits a slower-moving stellar wind that the star previously produced when it became a red giant, the collision produces a shock front and the shell of gas we see: NGC 6888. The interaction is so energetic, in fact, that it also produces X-rays.

Swipe right to see the image from last year.