After three months of bad weather, there was a rare and short occasion for imaging. This is the time of the year which would allow intense data collection due to the very long nights, but even those two nights were cut down to just a couple of hours due to fog and higher clouds.
If I hadn't had my new OSC camera sitting around for its first light, I probably would have let those nights pass by without any imaging attempt. Said and done, I've setup and collected data of the Triangulum galaxy which I had imaged a few years ago (Messier 33). It's different optics (although not by too much) but most importantly a different camera. In the previous imaging attempt, I've used my DSLR which was and still is not modified and therefore, it lacks all the Ha signal that the galaxy emits, leading to the strong blues. The new camera is supposed to make a significant difference here, which clearly shows.

In addition to the spectral characteristics, I've chosen to add an OSC especially for these occasions where planning a LRGB sequence due to the weather conditions becomes a futile endeavor. From the result I was able to get, I am pretty satisfied with the outcome. The camera's sensor (Sony's IMX533) is quite common now and from that point of view, I actually didn't have expectations for big surprises in either direction. Although, I have to say that the first camera delivered had amp glow and required replacement (which went smoothly and quick).

From a processing point of view, I've used AstroPixelProcessor (APP) for the integration, background correction and colour calibration. Subsequent processing was done completely in Affinity Photo.
Maybe a small remark about APP, instead of integrating debayered images, I've used the Bayer drizzle integration and compared to a debayered integration process. I have to say that the Bayer drizzle integration (without any upsampling) shows a more detailed result and interestingly less noise. The latter effect is especially "noticeable" in the sky background allowing much easier noise reduction.

Since this whole imaging project was more about testing equipment than putting all effort into a single object, I've collected data on Messier 45, which is also published here: Messier 45, The Plejades - A second visit.

Enjoy and feel free to comment.

Björn

* This image was not and will not be submitted for IOTD consideration