Windy Star Erodes IC 59 and IC 63

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You wouldn't think it would be windy in the vacuum of outer space, but it is, just a different kind of wind.  Here on earth wind is caused by air flowing from a high pressure area to a low pressure area and we feel the air molecules moving by us.  In space, wind is caused by stars.

In the above picture, Gamma Cassiopeia, the bright star in the center is an eruptive variable star that sheds massive outflows of itself into space.  These stellar winds interact with clouds of gas and dust, such as the two (IC 59 and IC 63) you see to the right of Gamma.  The stellar winds are eroding this clouds and in time the clouds will disappear.

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• Technical Data:
• Composite of eight 15-minute exposures
• Camera: CCD-Labs Q453
• Telescope: Orion 190mm f/5.3 Maksutov/Newtonian
• Mount: Parallax Instruments 150C
• Date: 10-03-2010
• Location: ASKC Dark Sky Site near Butler, Missouri, USA
• Captured with "Nebulosity" software; processed in "DeepSkyStacker", and finished in Photoshop CS3.