M31 (NGC 224, Andromeda Galaxy), which forms a local galaxy group together with M32 and M110, is the nearest large galaxy to our own Milky Way. M31 is a barred spiral galaxy that is approximately 2.5 million light-years (ly) from Earth and appears in the constellation Andromeda.
The Andromeda Galaxy is classified as a SA(s)b spiral galaxy (in the de Vaucouleurs–Sandage Extended Classification System), which is the designation for a large spiral galaxy with moderately well-defined spiral arms and a relatively prominent central bulge. Estimates put the number of stars it contains at about 1 trillion.
In the region of the outer blue spiral arms, the red ‘islands’ are red nebulae and are areas of active star formation captured in this image using a Ha 5nm narrowband filter.
Capture Dates: 9/2/2024 and 9/3/2024
Equipment
Stellarvue SVX90T Apochromatic Refractor @native 540mm fL
Guidescope/Cam: SV106 with ASI120mm mini
ASIAir Plus, ASI2600MCMC, ZWO AM5 mount, ZWO 5-position filter wheel
Filters
Antlia Triband RGB Ultra: 281x120s [9:22]
Antlia Dual Narrowband 5nm Ha/OIII: 30x300s [2:30]
Total integration time: 11:52
Processed with PixInsight and Adobe Photoshop.
Another Beautiful image Greg with super details... better every year! An image I can look at for a long time!
Terri
@terri Thanks, Terri. I didn't realize it had been 2 years since my last attempt! It's nice to revisit these iconic targets every once in a while -- like coming back to see old friends. 😊
Greg
