Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Ursa Major (UMa)  ·  Contains:  HD122471  ·  HD122865  ·  M 101  ·  NGC 5422  ·  NGC 5447  ·  NGC 5449  ·  NGC 5450  ·  NGC 5451  ·  NGC 5453  ·  NGC 5455  ·  NGC 5457  ·  NGC 5461  ·  NGC 5462  ·  NGC 5471  ·  NGC 5473  ·  NGC 5474  ·  NGC 5477  ·  NGC 5484  ·  NGC 5485  ·  NGC 5486  ·  Pinwheel galaxy
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Pinwheel Galaxy // M101, Gene Braig
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Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
Pinwheel Galaxy // M101, Gene Braig
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Description

> Pinwheel Galaxy // M101

>On the outer edge of the Mojave Desert, where the sky is super dark, you'll see things that will almost make you believe in aline spacecraft. Satellites, meteors, seemingly moving darkness that almost looks like a cloaking interstellar ship. Incredible place.

>Since it's galaxy season and I didn't think the focal length of the Redcat51 would be good enough, I busted out the 100-400mm Fujinon lens. In all and even with flat frames, it left a large vignette. It also seemed to distort stars in a way I think is best described as astigmatism, warping them around the central focal point, but I'm unsure if this is possibly due to not using the star-tracker. Still with the double gradients from sensor noise (or internal light leak) and the vignette; this was one of the most difficult edits so far and really, I'm surprised how decent it developed.

>Debating on whether to get a proper dovetail for this lens (for star-tracking) although I'm thinking probably not. Set-up I have currently I'd like to leave the same, with any improvements saved for a much better rig coming next year.

🔭 Fujinon 100-400mm
📷 Fuji X-T4 (Modified)
📊 No filter
🏹 iOptron SkyGuider Pro
💻 DSS, Affinity, PS
🌗 69% Waning Gibbous 
🌌 600 X 30" - ISO640
🎞 40 - dark, bias, flat, dark flats
⚙ 5H integration time
🖥 6 hours of editing (amateur)
📍 Kingston, AZ
💡 Bortle 4
🌡 11°C
🌬  4 KPH

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Pinwheel Galaxy // M101, Gene Braig