M106 - Spiral Galaxy in Canes Venatici
|
M106 (NGC 4258) was first discovered by Pierre Mechain in 1781. It was posthumously added to the Messier catalog in the 21st century. It lies approximately 25 million light years away from Earth and spans 80,000 light years. M106 is considered a Seyfert II galaxy in that it has a very bright, quasar-like nucleus that is high in x-ray and ionization spectral emissions. This indicates that part of the galaxy may be falling into a massive black hole. The galaxy below, NGC 4217 is a companion to M106. |
|
| Telescope: | Celestron 11in. EdgeHD @ f/7 |
| Camera: | Canon 650D (Hap Griffin modified); Raw capture; ISO 1600 |
| Mount: | Losmandy G11 |
| Guiding: | Starlight Xpress Lodestar on ONAG |
| Exposures: |
30 @ 5 min. . |
| Processing: |
Images were focused using the camera' Live View function. They were converted in Digital Photo Professional before being calibrated, aligned, and combined in ImagesPlus. The composite image was adjusted in Photoshop. Topaz DeNoise was used to smooth the image. |
| Location: |
Shot
on 4/25/14 from my backyard observatory in southeastern Minnesota. |
| Back to Index | |