Colourful DSOs?

Small telescopes don't show much colour in deep-sky objects. Among the objects outside the solar system, a few N-type stars and some doubles would probably top the list of colourful objects.

Which objects within the category "clusters and nebulae" are the most colourful in the sky? Here is my top-5 list:

1: Double cluster in Perseus (incl. M-type supergiants)
2: M41 (also striking red stars)
3: NGC7662 (strong blue colour)
4: M42 (definitely green)
5: NGC6543 (similar to 7662, but colour less striking)

Other opinions? What do big Dob owners say?

Hi Inge,

I have seen some red in the Trifid nebula with a 10" scope, red in M42 with a 16" and some red in the eta carinae nebula with a 12". Numerous planetary nebulae show strong green or blue shades, one of the best is NGC 3918. For clusters, it is had to go past the M supergiant in the Jewel Box cluster.

Cheers,

Maurice

Inge, in my 13" I've found that most planetary nebulae are bluish-greenish, but the "Ghost of Jupiter" NGC 3242, and the "Saturn nebula" NGC 7009, are both a very striking green color.

Doug Scobel

Inge
I would agree that color is common in planetary nebula. I see M57 as a neon blue smoke ring, The Ghost of Jupiter has both blue and green in it to my eye, the eskimo nebula has a bluish purplish tint to it's nebulosity, NGC 6543 is bluish, NGC 7662 is aptly named as the "blue snowball",
I must ask my 12 year old daughter, the one with the 9mm pupils and the 20/15 vision to look at some DSO's and tell me what she sees as far as color. I suppose there is the possibility that some of us old guys with large aperture instruments might be suffering from a "Monet" effect where as we develop lens opacification and cataracts some colors are transmitted better than others to our retinas. However, as I understood the explanation for Monet's "blue period", I think it was said that he had to put loads of blue on his canvas in order to get enough blue to come through his aging lens and have his painting look "blue enough" to him. If that be true, I guess Monet would have seen yellow more easily when observing than blue.

I certainly agree with Maurice concerning the Jewel Box Cluster.

Other colorful objects not mentioned include IC 418 (the Raspberry or Spirograph Nebula), the Homunculus Nebula (a distinct orange), NGC 40, NGC 1535, NGC 6369 (the Little Ghost), NGC 6445, NGC 6210, and NGC 6826 (the Blinking Nebula).

Dave Mitsky