Shane's Planet

Nudism puts colors in life

M2 9: Wings of a Butterfly Nebula : Are stars better appreciated for their art after they die? Actually, stars usually create their most artistic displays as they die. In the case of low-mass stars like our Sun and M2-9 pictured above, the stars transform themselves from normal stars to white dwarfs by casting off their outer gaseous envelopes. The expended gas frequently forms an impressive display called a planetary nebula that fades gradually over thousands of years. M2-9, a butterfly planetary nebula 2100 light-years away shown in representative colors, has wings that tell a strange but incomplete tale. In the center, two stars orbit inside a gaseous disk 10 times the orbit of Pluto. The expelled envelope of the dying star breaks out from the disk creating the bipolar appearance. Much remains unknown about the physical processes that cause planetary nebulae. via NASA

Side view of the Pencil Nebula.

Milky Way and Meteors over the Geysers of Yellowstone by David Lane

Film Photographer Spotlight: Eugene Levy

Name:  Eugene Levy Age: 27 years old Shooting For: 5 years Camera: Fujica GS645 / Kiev 88cm Favorite film:  Kodak Ektar 100, Kodak Portra 160, Kodak Portra 400.

Eugene on why he shoots film:

“The choice to begin shooting film came shortly after I picked up my first camera, which was digital. I quickly jumped to film photography after being mesmerized by how the film pictures make me feel and by the process of film itself. I didn’t think much when I decide to sell all my digital gear and go back in the past by using a film camera. Since, I enjoy every second of it and can’t imagine myself picking up a digital camera. Don’t waste film, because somewhere a unicorn dies for your mistake”

The starburst galaxy Messier 82