April 17, 2017

 

Only two good nights so far this April. Still, I did manage to squeeze in some imaging.

 

M57 - The Ring Nebula

 

A preview of summer's attractions. The Ring is easily visible in small telescopes in the constellation Lyra. Formed as a dying star expelled gas, this planetary nebula is located about 2,300 light years away. Larger scopes can show the white dwarf star at its center.

 

This image comprises just 44 30-second subs taken with the T2i through the 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain for a total exposure time of 22 minutes.

M51 - The Whirlpool Galaxy

Appearing close to the Big Dipper, but actually inside the boundary of the constellation of Canes Venatici (the Hunting Dogs), this was the first spiral galaxy to be so classed. It is actually two galaxies: a large spiral interacting with an Seyfert galaxy nucleus. M51 is estimated to be about 23 million light years distant.

This image comprises 196 30-second subs taken on April 8 and April 14 taken with the T2i through the 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain at f/10 for a total exposure time of 98 minutes.

M13 - Globular Cluster in Hercules

Considered the brightest globular cluster in the northern sky, M13 is easily seen in binoculars and small telescopes, though larger apertures are need to resolve its stars. Several hundred thousand stars are packed into a ball about 145 light years in diameter. M13 is estimated to be more than 25,000 light years distant.

 This image is comprised of 37 30-second subs taken with the T2i through the 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain at f/10 for a total exposure time of 18 minutes and 30 seconds.

Winter 2016-2017

Moving toward using the modified T2i as the primary imaging camera. This comes largely after figuring out how to take flats properly using BackyardEOS, which makes the resulting images much more satisfying.

M97 - The Owl Nebula

The famed planetary nebula in Ursa Major, first identified in 1781. Located just over 2,000 light years away.

This image comprises 184 30-second sub-exposures taken with the T2i through the 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain at f/10. Total exposure time: 92 minutes.

M81 - Spiral Galaxy in Ursa Major

Located about 12 million light years away. Generally considered one of the finest spiral galaxies for observing

This image was made from 162 30-second sub-exposures with the T2i through the 8: Schmidt-Cassegrain. Total exposure time: 81 minutes. Would have liked to get more exposure time on this object, but the weather was not compliant.

M109 -- Spiral Galaxy in Ursa Major

Another splendid spiral in the Big Dipper. Estimated to be about 83 million light years distant.

 

This image was created from 117 30-second sub-exposures taken with the T2i through the 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain at f/10 for a total exposure time of 58 minutes and 30 seconds. Much more exposure time is needed to draw out details, but the weather did not afford many clear nights this winter.