At a distance of 17 million light years, M94 has 2 distinct rings. The inner ring is 5,400 light years across, while the outer ring is 45,000 light years in diameter. These rings are at the resonance points in the disc of the galaxy. Both rings are elliptical from our point of view, with the major axis of each ellipse offset from one another.
The inner ring has a very strong star formation region. The colour of the young stars is easy to spot. While there are many other galaxies in the photo, only a few are gravitationally bound to M94. It is these tiny 'PGCs' that I find fun.
There are several excellent photos of M94 on Astrobin which show structure and colour in the outer ring. In my skies however, LRGB work will always be limited. I was delighted to get some minor detail at '6 o'clock' in the outer ring. Any colour would have taken a much greater effort. Perhaps one day I will have my Bortle 2 sanctuary.
CS
Bob
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