Crescent and Gamma Cygni nebulae (annotated view)

“While they seem like natural works of abstract art, nebulae also capture the attention of professional astronomers because of what they can teach us about the composition and lifecycles of the hundreds of billions of stars in our galaxy,” Terry says. 

Western Veil (NGC 6960) and Pickering’s Triangle (NGC 6979) 

Hydrogen, helium and oxygen gases – the same type of gases found on Earth – form massive clouds of cosmic gas and dust set aglow by the borrowed light of stars.

The Heart Nebula (IC1805)

The ‘Heart Nebula’ shows the reddish glow of hydrogen atoms energised by bright stars that form inside this emission nebula.

M42 Orion Nebula

“My very first photo of an object outside our Solar System was of the Orion Nebula, well known as a birthplace for star formation,” says Terry.

In this photo, Terry combined his capture with that of his friend Andy D’arienzo from Waning Crescent Observatory in Long Island, New York resulting in a unique perspective of “one of the most photographed and spectacular Nebulae in the winter night sky,” he says.

Read more about this photo here.

The Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888)

“I have had a fascination for the night sky and also photography since I was a child,” says Terry. “We live in a universe full of beauty and even though much of that is on our own planet, I desired to combine my passions for photography and astronomy.”

The Rosette Nebula (Caldwell 49 / NGC2237) 

“Our Sun and the planets and most of the objects in our Solar System – as well as the atoms in your own body – were once embedded in a glowing reddish-pink nebula that faded more than 5 billion years ago,” says Terry.

Horsehead and Flame nebulae (Barnard 33 and NGC 202)

The cameras used by astrophotographers such as Terry are much more sensitive than the human eye, but even so, many hours of single exposures ranging from a couple of minutes to an hour are often necessary in order to be able to capture the colour and detail.

Terry captured these stunning nebula over several nights, completed on 5 January 2013 with a total exposure time of 9.5 hours.

Sadr and the surrounding Gamma Cygni nebulae (annotated view)

“When I photograph nebulae within our own Milky Way I often use what we call narrow band filters, which reveal a lot of detail not seen in a natural coloured image,” says Terry.

Read more about this image here.

The Heart and Soul nebulae mosaic

These nebulae are more than 7000 light years away and span 300 light years across, so it often takes hours of single exposures in Terry’s observatory to get the colour and detail to truly do the formations justice.

Terry captured this composite image in October 2014. The bottom left section shows part of lesser known emission nebula, SH2-202.

A Red and Blue Rose (The Rosette Nebula False Colour Hybrid)

“In cosmic terms, a nebula is as fleeting as a sunset or a campfire and, to many casual stargazers, just as innately beautiful,” says Terry Hancock, an astrophotographer with a passion for nebula, who operates out of his backyard observatory called the Downunder Observatory in Michigan, USA. 

The Soul Nebula (IC1848)

The Soul Nebula sits southeast of the Heart in the Cassiopeia constellation – which can only be seen from the Northern Hemisphere in winter. Some describe this nebula as resembling a small human body or a foetus, hence its nickname.

Photographed in September 2012 over five nights with a total exposure time of 20 hours.

The Heart Nebula (IC1805)

IC1805 most commonly known as The Heart Nebula for its shape, lies some 7500 light years away in the constellation Cassiopeia, named after the mythological Greek queen who always boasted of her beauty.

The colours of nebulae come out when the atoms inside the cloud are illuminated by neighbouring stars. While some nebula can be seen with the naked eye or with a pair of binoculars, we won’t experience the colour and detail that astrophotographers can bring out.

Shot in 2013 over three nights with a total exposure of 14.5 hours.