Tarantula Nebula
Student Study

Our student’s project who is a physicist student at the University of Cape Town. Acquiring data using the Tony Fairall Teaching Telescope (TFTT)Color

 

Image Practical: This practical observation was done in groups of six and involved the selection of a suitable target that would be visible from the TFTO on the night of observation.

 

As for why the Tarantula Nebula was chosen it is “the largest and brightest star-forming region in the Local Group,” according to NASA, where the local group is referring to the galaxies nearest to our own, the Milky Way. With this making it an object of interest, along with it meeting the observational requirements made it an ideal target.

 

After the images had been collected, each member then went on to process the images individually, thus leading to final output.

 

Finally a quoted description of the Color Image Practical from the manual:     “ This practical covers how to plan an observing session, how to acquire data using the Tony Fairall Teaching Telescope (TFTT), how to process your collected data, using calibration images, and finally how to create a single, color image.”References:NASA, (2022) A cosmic Tarantula, caught by NASA’s Webb. Available at:https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/a-cosmic-tarantula-caught-by-nasas-webb/ (Accessed: 21 January 2026).​

 

Dr. Bettye WalkerBoard Member, Rotary Club of Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA)International Facilitator for PeacePP, 32 Yr memberBoard Member, OASIS Club, National Space Society Chapter Honorary Member,Blouberg Club,Cape Town, South Africa from my iPhone

 

Dr. Bettye D. Walker, President/CEOCo- Founder:A-MAN, Inc. STEM Science Center