| "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 | |
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| Resolutions Available: 884x585 : 1360x900 : 2719x1800 : 3884x2572 | |
| Object | M33 - Triangulum Galaxy |
| 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 reddish-pink knot located within the top 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 six panel mosaic is an LRGB composite utilising a synthetic luminance layer. Data acquired on the Lightbuckets 24" RCOS. |
| Optics | RCOS 24" F/8 (4876 mm FL) |
| Camera | Apogee Alta U42 - 1x1 bin (image scale .57 arcsec/pix) |
| Mount | RCOS Professional Series Equatorial Fork |
| Exposure |
Total exposure time: 6 hours (R:G:B-20mins:20mins:20mins respectively) per panel |
| Date | October 2010 |