M1 supernova remnant
Canon EOS5DMkII 254mm Newtonian @ 1200mm 33 x 30s f/4.8 ISO6400 2010-12-11 21:19:07-21:38:08 UT
From Rookhope 54.8
Also known as the Crab Nebula, this is an expanding cloud of glowing gas, thought to be the remnant of a supernova described by Chinese observers in 1054. There is a fast pulsar inside it, not visible in this photo, which may be the star which exploded.