Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Ursa Major (UMa)  ·  Contains:  Bode's Galaxy  ·  Cigar Galaxy  ·  M 81  ·  M 82  ·  NGC 2959  ·  NGC 2961  ·  NGC 2976  ·  NGC 3031  ·  NGC 3034  ·  NGC 3077
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M81, M82 and IFN, Göran Nilsson
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M81, M82 and IFN

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
M81, M82 and IFN, Göran Nilsson
Powered byPixInsight

M81, M82 and IFN

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Description

Here I set out to see how much IFN (Integrated flux nebulas) I could capture with the RASA in a few hours. The area around M81 and M82 are by now well known for its prominent IFN, although it is still a very faint form of nebulosity. I actually captured more than looked good as it seemed to drown the nice galaxies in there. So in this version I decided not to draw out all the IFN signal that is in the data.

This is what Widipedia writes about IFN: Integrated flux nebulas are a relatively recently identified astronomical phenomenon. In contrast to the typical and well known gaseous nebulas within the plane of the Milky Way galaxy, IFNs lie beyond the main body of the galaxy.

The term was coined by Steve Mandel-Wilson who defined them as "high galactic latitude nebulae that are illuminated not by a single star (as most nebula in the plane of the Galaxy are) but by the energy from the integrated flux of all the stars in the Milky Way. These nebulae clouds, an important component of the interstellar medium, are composed of dust particles, hydrogen and carbon monoxide and other elements."

Comments

Revisions

    M81, M82 and IFN, Göran Nilsson
    Original
    M81, M82 and IFN, Göran Nilsson
    C
  • Final
    M81, M82 and IFN, Göran Nilsson
    D

C

Description: Here I have added about 40% refractor data (from October) to M81 and M82. Made them a little bit sharper

Uploaded: ...

D

Description: Reduced the refractor data a bit on M81.

Uploaded: ...

Sky plot

Sky plot

Histogram

M81, M82 and IFN, Göran Nilsson