Mike Lewis
Staff Member
Some targets are imaged often, but still manage to provide really nice results (like many iconic scenic locations here on Earth). M81 is certainly in that category, a large tilted grand spiral design galaxy. I have now captured this 3 times; once as part of a well known composite with M82 (a fascinating galaxy in its own right), once on a trip to New Mexico dedicated to astrophotography, and then again now. The M81/M82 pair image has been one of my favorites, while the previous image of M81 by itself has been one of my least favorite, captured while dodging lots of clouds and exhibiting both tracking and focus issues. This version, captured from my remotely controlled gear located in southern AZ I think is a better result between the 2 higher magnification images.
The star forming regions seem to show up rather well with just RGB imaging, and I was also able to start to bring out some of the very faint IFN (intergalactic flux nebula) that seems to be prevalent when looking out towards this direction in the night sky. The irregular patch positioned above the main galaxy is Holmberg IX, a dwarf irregular galaxy that is considered to be a companion galaxy of M81.
Here is the image, followed by some extra details about it from Wikipedia, followed by the gear and collection details. As always, comments and critiques most welcome.
From Wikipedia:
Messier 81 (also known as NGC 3031 or Bode's Galaxy) is a grand design spiral galaxy about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. It has a D25 isophotal diameter of 29.44 kiloparsecs (96,000 light-years).[2][5] Because of its relative proximity to the Milky Way galaxy, large size, and active galactic nucleus (which harbors a 70 million M☉[6] supermassive black hole), Messier 81 has been studied extensively by professional astronomers. The galaxy's large size and relatively high brightness also makes it a popular target for amateur astronomers.[7] In late February 2022, astronomers reported that M81 may be the source of FRB 20200120E, a repeating fast radio burst.[8][9]
Equipment:
ZWO ASI1600MM-C Camera @ -10C and Gain:139 Offset:21
Software Bisque MyT Mount
Celestron EdgeHD 9.25 SCT with 0.7x reducer, 1645mm @ f/7
Software:
PHD2 Guiding Software
NINA Astroimaging Software
Pixinsight Commercial Version 1.8
Software Bisque TheSkyX
Lightroom CC
Photoshop CC
Light Frames:
Red: 75 x 180 secs (3 hrs 45 mins)
Red: 42 x 30 secs (21 mins)
Green: 76 x 180 secs (3 hrs 48 mins)
Green: 42 x 30secs (21 mins)
Blue: 76 x 180 secs (3 hrs 48 mins)
Blue: 42 x 30 secs (21 mins)
12 hrs 24 mins total
Dark Frames:
10 x 180 secs, RGB (30 mins)
10 x 30 secs, RGB (5 mins)
Bias Frames:
60
Flat Frames:
10 each filter
The star forming regions seem to show up rather well with just RGB imaging, and I was also able to start to bring out some of the very faint IFN (intergalactic flux nebula) that seems to be prevalent when looking out towards this direction in the night sky. The irregular patch positioned above the main galaxy is Holmberg IX, a dwarf irregular galaxy that is considered to be a companion galaxy of M81.
Here is the image, followed by some extra details about it from Wikipedia, followed by the gear and collection details. As always, comments and critiques most welcome.
From Wikipedia:
Messier 81 (also known as NGC 3031 or Bode's Galaxy) is a grand design spiral galaxy about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. It has a D25 isophotal diameter of 29.44 kiloparsecs (96,000 light-years).[2][5] Because of its relative proximity to the Milky Way galaxy, large size, and active galactic nucleus (which harbors a 70 million M☉[6] supermassive black hole), Messier 81 has been studied extensively by professional astronomers. The galaxy's large size and relatively high brightness also makes it a popular target for amateur astronomers.[7] In late February 2022, astronomers reported that M81 may be the source of FRB 20200120E, a repeating fast radio burst.[8][9]
Equipment:
ZWO ASI1600MM-C Camera @ -10C and Gain:139 Offset:21
Software Bisque MyT Mount
Celestron EdgeHD 9.25 SCT with 0.7x reducer, 1645mm @ f/7
Software:
PHD2 Guiding Software
NINA Astroimaging Software
Pixinsight Commercial Version 1.8
Software Bisque TheSkyX
Lightroom CC
Photoshop CC
Light Frames:
Red: 75 x 180 secs (3 hrs 45 mins)
Red: 42 x 30 secs (21 mins)
Green: 76 x 180 secs (3 hrs 48 mins)
Green: 42 x 30secs (21 mins)
Blue: 76 x 180 secs (3 hrs 48 mins)
Blue: 42 x 30 secs (21 mins)
12 hrs 24 mins total
Dark Frames:
10 x 180 secs, RGB (30 mins)
10 x 30 secs, RGB (5 mins)
Bias Frames:
60
Flat Frames:
10 each filter
