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PHOTOGRAPHY BY
Margaret Watson LRPS AFIAP
 

Astro Gallery, Galaxies, M51 Whirlpool Galaxy
M51 Whirlpool GalaxyMouseover image to see plate solved annotations, click image to see it at a larger size.

M51 Whirlpool Galaxy

Image contains M51, NGC 5194, NGC 5195, IC4277, IC4278

The M51 Whirlpool Galaxy, also known as NGC 5194, is an interacting grand-design spiral galaxy with a Seyfert active nucleus in the constellation Canes Venatici. It is estimated to be 23 million light-years away and is one of the best known galaxies in the sky.


Reference:1023Date taken:March 2014
Ambient temperature:22CLocation:Galera, Andalucia, Spain
Imaging telescope:Celestron C8 EdgeHD, 2032mm @ f10Imaging camera:Atik 383L+
Camera setpoint:-10CMount:Takahashi EM200 Temma 2M
Guiding telescope:ST-80Guiding camera:SSAG
Filters:Baader L, Ha, R, G, BLight frames:L=28x600s, R=12x300s, G=13x300s, B=12x300s, L=24x60s, R=12x60s, G=12x60s, B=12x60s, Ha=7x600s
Integration:9.8 hoursDark frames:35
Flat frames:20 each channelBias frames:35
Capture software:MaximDLGuiding software:MaximDL
Processing software:PixInsight, Photoshop CS5, Noel Carboni's Actions and Nik ToolsAccessories:Lakeside focuser
 
Processing notes:The body of the galaxy processed in LRGB with the 600s and 300s exposures. The core of the galaxy processed in RGB with the 60s exposures using layer masking in Photoshop. The Ha exposures where not used due to the lack of data for this filter. This image definitely needs more data.

Center (RA, Dec): (202.448, 47.204)
Center (RA, hms): 13h 29m 47.634s
Center (Dec, dms): +47 12' 13.296"
Size: 23.7 x 16.7 arcmin
Radius: 0.242 deg
Orientation: Up is 90.3 degrees E of N
Online plate solving courtesy of astrometry.net

 
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