The name of this galaxy speaks for itself and I find the most remarkable feature is the well-defined dark dust lane that bisects the galaxy. Astronomers report that these dust particles, many of which are micron in size, comprise an estimated mass of at least 10 million suns. Another amazing feature of this galaxy is the massive black hole at its center which contains an estimated thousand million solar masses.
Photo Details
May 18-19, 21, 2014
Orion 8" Astrograph on VX Mount
Nikon D3100 Camera - ISO 1600
Baader MPC Mark III Multi-Purpose Coma Corrector
Skyglow filter
Autoguider
82 sub-frames at 1.5 minutes/frame
21 sub-frames at 3.0 minutes/frame
Total Exposure Time = 3 hours 7 minutes
Image Stacking in Deep Sky Tracker
Image Processing in PhotoShop
This massive galaxy is known as a textbook grand-design spiral. About 24 million light years away from us, it is nearly twice the size of our own Milky Way galaxy. If you look closely at the image, you may see numerous bluish clusters and red HIII regions along the arms. Though faint, astronomers estimate some of these knots hold 10 million suns. Staggering and amazing to think that the light from this galaxy began its journey here as the Earth was beginning to enter a series of ice ages and the great apes were spreading across the old world.
Photo Details
May 3-4, 2014
Orion 8" Astrograph on VX Mount
Nikon D3100 Camera - ISO 1600
Baader MPC Mark III Multi-Purpose Coma Corrector
Skyglow filter
Autoguider
100 sub-frames at 1.5 minutes/frame
Total Exposure Time = 2 hours 30 minutes
Image Stacking in Deep Sky Tracker
Image Processing in PhotoShop
Note: This was the first image taken over multiple nights.
