M52 and the Bubble Nebula

Just a few degrees to the west of the constellation Cassiopeia, open star cluster M52 and emission nebula NGC 7635 - commonly known as the Bubble Nebula - show very different stages in the lives of stars. M52 is a cluster of about 200 stars about 5000 light years from earth, originally born from a cloud of hydrogen gas similar to the one housing the Bubble. Meanwhile the massive young Wolf-Rayat star SAO 20575, with between 10-40 solar masses, is shining so violently that it is literally tearing apart the outer layers of the star and pushing open a large cavity in the surrounding nebula at a distance of 11,000 light years. This star is a prime supernova candidate, and when it reaches the end of its relatively quick life and explodes, the lower mass stars from M52 will still be shining out into space as they have done for millions of years.

ASA DDM60 Pro, Pentax 125 SDP, Canon 5D Mk II. 15 x 8 min at ISO 1600.