| "The sky is the ultimate art gallery just above us." - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 82) |
Astrophotography by Jason Jennings |
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| Galaxies :: M33 - Triangulum Galaxy Wide Field | |
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| Resolutions Available: 800x600 : 1600x1200 | |
| Object | M33 - Triangulum Galaxy Wide Field |
| Comment |
The spiral galaxy M33 (NGC598) resides in the constellation Triangulum. It is a member of the Local Group of galaxies which also includes our Milky Way galaxy. While small in comparison to its nearby neighbour M31 the Andromeda galaxy, it contains some very interesting regions within its spiral arm structure. Numerous reddish HII regions (diffused emission nebula containing ionised Hydrogen) along with subtle blue hue clouds of young stars are present. NGC604 is one of the largest known HII regions with a diameter of nearly 1,500 light years. It is situated along the north-eastern part of the galaxy and is the visible bright red knot located in the lower right of the galaxy. Compared to a vast majority of celestial objects in the universe, M33 exhibits a blue doppler shift when measured from our Solar System. This indicates the galaxy is approaching instead of receding. Measurements performed by NED have determined an approach rate of 179 +/-3 km/sec. When corrected for our motion around the Milky Way's Galactic center, it is approaching our Galaxy at 24 km/sec. M33 resides approximately three million light years away. This image is a LRGB composite. |
| Optics | Takahashi TOA-150 F/7 (1050mm FL) |
| Camera | SBIG ST10XME (NABG) - 1x1 bin (image scale: 1.33 arcsec/pix) |
| Mount | Paramount GT1100s |
| Exposure | Total exposure time: 3.5 hours (L:90min,R:40min,G:40min,B:40min) |
| Date | 15/8/2007 |