Hello all,
I am continuing to explore the possibilities of my C8 sct scope, and so am tackling some of the "big" galaxies. I have imaged M101 before, but always in very wide field. Here is my new image, taken April 10, 2021. Not much processing, just a good stack of 110 minutes using 300 second lights, ~ 40 flats, and 10 darks.
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Nov 29, 2021
Addendum - some months later, I came back to this image - using the same stacked data - but this time I used pixinsight exclusively. In particular I focused on a simple stretch and then masking techniques using GAME script. Its a very nice simple way to make a good mask. In this processing I didn't go too hard on the black point, nor did I stretch it too much.
Regards, Ian
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"Messier 101 is a very large, relatively nearby, face-on spiral galaxy in the constellation Ursa Major. It is also known as the Pinwheel Galaxy. M101's large angular extent - some 22' across - gives it a low surface brightness, requiring dark skies to optimize the view. A fairly large scope, very dark skies, and a low power eyepiece are required to observe the spiral structure well."
My single light subs were showing these structures. Its why I like AP.
Fun stuff: First light for the Moonlite crayford CHL focuser (purchased used from a gent in Toronto). This thing is beautiful, if you like a nicely made focuser, ha ha.
Challenges: Loading up my counterweights with full extension of the bar gave a small "clunk" when the dec axis rotates. This messed up a lot of my frames, but the good news is that I discovered the problem in a mock up trial this evening.
Enjoy, thanks for looking.
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