M81 and M82 in Ursa Major (LRGB)
The galaxy on the left side of this image is M81. This object was first discovered by Johann Elert Bode in 1774 and is named "Bode's Galaxy" in his honor. Bode's Galaxy lies about 12 Million light years away in the direction of the constellation Ursa Major and contains approximately 250 billion stars making it slight smaller than our own Milky Way galaxy. The galaxy on the lower right side of this image is M82. Also known as the Cigar Galaxy, M82 is known as a starburst galaxy owing to its tremendous rate of star formation. For more information regarding these two objects, click on the links to Rob Gendler's website near the bottom of this page.
Image Details
| Target: | M81 (NGC 3031) and M82 (NGC 3034) |
| Coordinates (Center - J2000): | RA 9h 55m 53s ; Dec +69d 21m 55s |
| Date: | 18 February 2007 |
| Constellation: | Ursa Major |
| Imaging Location: | Chiefland, Florida |
| Camera: | SBIG ST-8XME & CFW-10 Color Filter Wheel |
| Filters: | Astrodon Series E Tru-Balance LRGB |
| Telescope: | Takahashi TSA-102S 4" APO Triplet f/8 (FL = 814mm) |
| Mount: | Takahashi EM-200 Temma II GEM (12 VDC) |
| Image Scale: | 2.28 arcseconds per pixel |
| CCD Temperature: | -20 C |
| L:R:G:B Exposures: | 90:50:50:50 minutes (10 min. sub-exposures) |
| Mount Control Software: | The Sky 6.0.0.52 |
| Camera Control Software: | CCDSoft 5.00.182 |
| Focus Control Software: | FocusMax 3.3.15 |
| Executive Control Software: | CCD Commander 1.4.5 |
| Sub-frame Registration Software: | Registar |
| Calibration and Combining Software: | CCDStack |
| Final Processing Software: | Photoshop CS |
Additional Information
Description of M81 (By Rob Gendler): http://www.robgendlerastropics.com/M81text.html
Description of M82 (By Rob Gendler): http://www.robgendlerastropics.com/M82text.html