Messier – Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Dartford

Friday 3rd January 2025

NEVER LOOK AT THE SUN DIRECTLY. Please click here for solar observing safely.

A superb selection of member images taken on Friday 3rd January 2025.

The Sun at midday taken by Dr Mike Rushton taken using a Dwarf II smart scope. 20 x 1/250 sec at Gain 0 with a ND6 solar filter.

The Sun taken by Honor Wheeler

The Sun taken by Jim Burchell

The Pleiades by Dr Mike Rushton using a Dwarf II smart scope. 200 x 10sec exposures at Gain 60.

Crescent Moon and Venus taken by Honor Wheeler. Venus is top right of the Moon.

Saturn, Venus and the Moon taken by Honor Wheeler. Venus is top right of the Moon and Saturn is near the top left corner of the image.

NEVER LOOK AT THE SUN DIRECTLY. Please click here for solar observing safely. Thursday 2nd January 2025 was a good day & night for Astronomy. Clear views of the Sun during the day and a fantastic clear night. It was also an informal night too for the Society and as the sky was absolutely clear; without no hesitation members got out their telescopes and spent the evening observing the night sky. Below are some of the superb images members took that day and night. The Sun with lots of sunspots taken by Honor Wheeler

Crescent Moon in the sunset taken by Honor Wheeler

Waxing Crescent Moon & Earthshine by taken Honor Wheeler. The moon was 2.62 days old and 8.35% illuminated.

Crescent Moon by taken by John Archer

Crescent Moon taken by Dr Mike Rushton using a Dwarf II smart scope. 1/30 sec x 20 at gain 0 and no filter.

The Moon & Venus by taken Honor Wheeler (Venus is in the top left corner)

Orion, Jupiter and Mars by taken Honor Wheeler. Mars is left of Orion and Jupiter is above Orion.

Members observing at the Pavilion on the 2nd Jan 2025 taken by Honor Wheeler

The Horsehead Nebula taken by Jim Burchell using a Seestar S50 smartscope. 205 stacked images and processed using the Seestar S50 processing software. The Horsehead Nebula (also known as Barnard 33 or B33) is a small dark nebula in the constellation Orion and is located just to the south of the star Alnitak, the eastern most star of Orion’s Belt,

The Pleiades (also known as the Seven Sisters or Messier 45 is a young open star cluster in Taurus) taken by Diane Clarke taken using a Seestar S50 smartscope. 85 x 30sec exposures, Jpeg stacked using Seestar S50 internal software.

Shears Green Junior School Cosmic Camp – 27th Sept 2024

On Friday 27th September 2024 several CMHASD members helped out at Shears Green Junior School Cosmic Camp.

Chairman John Archer wrote ”First of all I really want to thank all of the team who supported our evening of outreach last Friday 27th. Once again we attended Cosmic Camp at Shears Green Junior School and were greeted by an enthusiastic audience, most of whom managed to observe Saturn, as well as a number of deep sky objects. There were indoor activities run by Rita and Debra, and the pupils were treated to our slideshow of members’ aurora images. Outside there were a range of scopes – Dob’s, a refractor and also Smartscopes, ably demonstrated by our hardy team including Steve, Dave, Andy, Diane, Mike, Jim & co – thank you all so much for giving up your time and getting involved – it was a wonderful and eventually clear night”.

Below are 2 of the images taken by members whilst at the school that the children saw.

M31 by Dr Mike Rushton using a Dwarf II smartscope with no processing. Stacked image of 200 x 10s exposures at gain 80.

M31 is a barred spiral galaxy and is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way. It is also known as The Andromeda Galaxy, Messier 31 and NGC 224. The galaxy is approximately 765 kpc (2.5 million light-years) from Earth. The galaxy’s name stems from the area of Earth’s sky in which it appears, the constellation of Andromeda. Ref:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andromeda_Galaxy.

M27 by Diane Clarke (with the help of Jim Burchell) taken using a Seestar S50. Stacked image of 224 x 10s exposures. Processed using Affinity Photo.

M27 (also known as the Dumbbell Nebula, Apple Core Nebula, Messier 27, and NGC 6853) is a planetary nebula (nebulosity surrounding a white dwarf) in the constellation Vulpecula, at a distance of about 1360 light-years. It was the first such nebula to be discovered, by Charles Messier in 1764. Ref:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumbbell_Nebula.

M31 by Kevin Langford – 19th August 2024

Messier 31 The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) taken by member Kevin Langford on the 19th August 2024 from Bexley. Kevin said ”This is just a 30mins of exposure as I was packing up for the night. I know it is very grainy, it needs a lot more time spent on it.” Well we think it is rather superb as it is Kevin!

Kevin acquired his image using an ES102 with focus reducer and L-eNhance filter. Processed using Nina, Siril, and Affinity photo.

Latest images by member Terry Miles

Two super images by member Terry Miles taken using his Seestar S50 smart telescope on the 11th August 2024. The images are short exposures for deep-sky objects but you can clearly see the ring nebula in the 1st image and some nebulosity of the Eastern Veil Nebula in the 2nd image.

M57 The Ring Nebula. Also catalogued as NGC 6720 is a planetary nebula in the northern constellation of Lyra.

NGC 6992 The Eastern Veil Nebula. The Veil Nebula is a cloud of heated and ionized gas and dust in the constellation Cygnus.

Messier 31 & NGC 6888 by Jim Burchell

Two deep sky images by member Jim Burchell taken on the 4th May 2024 using a Seestar S50 smart scope.

NGC 6888 (Total of 28mins of exposure)

NGC 6888 (also known as the Crescent Nebula, Caldwell 27 and Sharpless 105) is an emission nebula in the constellation Cygnus. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1792 and is about 5000 light-years from Earth.

Messier M31 (Total of 11mins of exposure)

Messier 31 also known as M31 and NGC 224 is the Andromeda Galaxy. M31 is a barred spiral galaxy and is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way.

Messier 13 by Diane Clarke

A superb image of Messier 13 by member Diane Clarke taken on the 29th April 2024 using a Seestar S50 250mm, 120 x 10sec exp @ f5.

Messier 13 or M13 (also designated NGC 6205 and sometimes called the Great Globular Cluster in Hercules, the Hercules Globular Cluster, or the Great Hercules Cluster), is a globular cluster of several hundred thousand stars in the constellation of Hercules.

Diane wrote ”I captured this image of M13 the great Hercules cluster last night I was only able to get 20 minutes worth of data before the clouds arrived. M13 possibly contains 300,000 to over 500,000 stars with a distance of 25117.4 Ly. Below & to the right is HD 150679 a Spectral type A2 variable star distance approx. 425.24 Ly. Below & to the left is HD 150998 a Spectral type K2 variable star distance approx. 1164.84 Ly.”

Bode’s Galaxy (M81) & the Cigar Galaxy (M82) by Jim Burchell

A super image of Bode’s Galaxy & the Cigar Galaxy in the constellation Ursa Major taken by member Jim Burchell on Wednesday 27th March 2024. Jim captured the image using a Seestar S50 smart telescope and stacking 60 x 10 second images.

Bode’s Galaxy is towards the top of the image and the Cigar Galaxy is towards the bottom of Jim’s image.

Bode’s Galaxy also known as Messier 81 (M81) is a grand design spiral galaxy which lies approximately 11.8 million light-years from Earth, with an apparent magnitude of 6.9.

The Cigar Galaxy which is also known as Messier 82 (M82) lies close to M81, and is often photographed together with Bode’s Galaxy as Jim has done. M82 is called the ‘Cigar Galaxy’ because of the elongated elliptical shape produced by the tilt of its starry disk relative to our line of sight.

The Cigar Galaxy is a starburst galaxy approximately 12 million light-years away from Earth with an apparent magnitude of 8.4. The starburst activity is thought to have been triggered by interaction with the neighbouring Bode’s Galaxy.

Both galaxies can be found about 10 degrees northwest of the star Dubhe in Ursa Major.

Messier 52 by Diane Clarke

A super image of Messier 52 or M52, also known as NGC 7654 taken by member Diane Clarke on the 6th March 2024 during a brief clear spell in the weather.

Messier 52 is also known as the Scorpion Cluster or the Salt & Pepper Cluster and it is an open cluster of stars in the constellation of Cassiopeia. The cluster has an apparent magnitude of 6.9 and lies at an approximate distance of 4,600 light years from Earth.

Diane acquired the image using a Seestar S50 smart scope, 270 x 10s subs, stacked & processed using Affinity Photo.

Visible at the bottom of the image is part of the Bubble Nebula also known as C11 and NGC7635.

The Whirlpool Galaxy (M51a) by Diane Clarke

A great image of the Whirlpool Galaxy, also known as Messier 51a (M51a) or NGC 5194 and its companion NGC 5195 taken by member Diane Clarke on the 3rd March 2024.

The Whirlpool Galaxy was the first galaxy to be classified as a spiral galaxy.

NGC 5195, which is also known as Messier 51b (M51b) is a dwarf galaxy and is the smaller object to the upper left to the Whirlpool galaxy in the image. NGC 5195 is gravitationally interacting with the Whirpool Galaxy. Both galaxies are found in the constellation Canes Venatici.

Diane acquired the image using a ZWO SeeStar S50 smart scope, taking 96 x 10sec subs and processed in Affinity photo.

The Orion Nebula by Jim Burchell

A lovely image of the Orion Nebula (Messier 42/M42) taken by Jim Burchell on the 23rd February 2024 using a ZWO SeeStar S50 smart scope. The image is a stacked image containing 12 minutes of 10 second images. Jim said ”Considering the Moon phase was 97% illuminated I was quite impressed with the image.”

The Orion Nebula (M42) by Dr Mike Rushton

A superb image of the Orion Nebula (Messier 42/M42) taken by Dr Mike Rushton on the 3rd March 2024.

Mike acquired the image using a Dwarf2 telescope from DWARFLAB and took 400 subframes of 10 secs which was then processed in SIRIL.

Messier 3

Messier 3 is a Globular Cluster in the constellation of Canes Venatici.

Images by Simon Dawes

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

Hot off the Press!!!!! member Kevin Langford’s Pleiades image and BBC Sky at Night

Check this out – our member Kevin Langford’s brilliant Pleiades (M45) image – see above; being used on the BBC Sky at Night website. Plus Kevin’s image was shown in the programme aired on the 16th May 2023 too!………Well Done Kevin 🙂

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0fmnyt0/p0fmp6yx

Ceres photobombing Messier 100 by Simon Dawes – 26th March 2023

On the night of the 26th/27th March 2023 Ceres appeared to ‘meet’ and pass directly in front of the beautiful spiral galaxy Messier 100 (M100) and for a few hours Ceres looked like a brilliant supernova beaming from one of the M100 galaxy’s arms.

At the time of the line-of-sight view, Ceres was shining from a piddling distance of 150 million miles (240 million kilometers) from Earth whilst the galaxy at 56 million light-years away; so actually trillions of miles apart! The ‘meeting’ took place in the constellation Coma Berenices just a few days after Ceres’ opposition, which is when Earth passes between it and the Sun.

Despite the poor weather CMHASD Trustee & member Simon Dawes managed to capture the event – see his image below 🙂 Ceres is identified with 2 red lines and M100 is at the 4 O’clock position from Ceres.

Ceres is a dwarf planet and the largest asteroid in the main asteroid belt that is between Mars & Jupiter. It was the first asteroid to be discovered on the 1st January 1801 and was classified as 1 Ceres in 1851. Ceres was designated a dwarf planet, a new category of solar system objects defined in August 2006 by the International Astronomical Union.

Ceres’s small size; about 14 times smaller than Pluto means that even at its brightest, it is too dim to be seen by the naked eye, except under extremely dark skies. Its apparent magnitude ranges from 6.7 to 9.3, peaking at opposition.

Messier 100 (also known as NGC 4321) is a face-on, spiral galaxy with an apparent magnitude of 9.3. It is one of the brightest and largest galaxies with a diameter of 160,000 light years. It was discovered in 1781.

Information of how Simon acquired his image is on his photo and for more information about this event see https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/observing-news/tell-time-with-the-big-dipper-see-ceres-transit-m100/#:~:text=By%20good%20fortune%20Ceres%20will%20pass%20directly%20in,northern%20portion%20of%20the%20Virgo%20Cluster%20this%20spring.

Venus & Pleiades by Jim Burchell – 10th April 2023

Super image of Venus and the Pleiades taken by member Jim Burchell on the 10th April 2023.

”The Pleiades are also known as The Seven Sisters, Messier 45 and other names by different cultures, is an asterism and an open star cluster containing middle-aged, hot B-type stars in the north-west of the constellation Taurus. At a distance of about 444 light years, it is among the nearest star clusters to Earth. It is the nearest Messier object to Earth, and is the most obvious cluster to the naked eye in the night sky. The cluster is dominated by hot blue luminous stars that have formed within the last 100 million years.” ref:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleiades

Image was taken with a Pentax KP 135mm, F6.3, 10sec and ISO 8oo.

Camera was mounted on a Skywacher Star Adventurer.

Images by Jim Burchell – 23rd to 25th Feb 2023

Member Jim Burchell was busy out and about towards the end of February photographing our stunning sky and below is a selection of his superb images.

Orion, Taurus and the Pleiades taken on the 23rd Feb from the CMHASD pavilion, Sutton-at-Hone.

Image was taken with a Pentax KP on a static tripod, F6.3, 30 sec, 18 MM and iso 800.

Crescent Moon on the 24th Feb.

The Sun taken on the 24th Feb.

NEVER LOOK AT THE SUN DIRECTLY. Please see our Solar Observing safety page at crayfordmanorastro.com/solar-safety/

Image of the Sun showing sunspots 3229, 3230, 3234, 3235, 3236 & 3237.

This white light image was taken with a Pentax KP attached to 102mm Altair Astro refractor. 1/320 sec & iso200. The image wasn’t very sharp as there was some light cloud and the image was then coloured in Snapseed.

Crescent Moon with Jupiter & Venus on the 25th Feb.

Sirius, Orion, Hyades in Taurus with Mars above and the Pleiades by George Buckberry

On the 17th Dec 2022 member George Buckberry captured this super image of Sirius, Orion, Hyades in Taurus with Mars above and the Pleiades. The photo was taken on a mobile Samsung SE20 in night mode and tweaked in Snapseed by George.

Type 1a Supernova SN2022hrs in NGC 4647

An awesome capture by Simon Dawes of a Supernova called SN2022hrs in NGC 4647.

NGC 4647 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Virgo. Supernova SN2022hrs was discovered in the galaxy NGC4647 on the 16th April 2022 by astronomer Koichi Itagaki. NGC 4647 is 63 million light years away, so, this star exploded 63 million years ago and it took that long for the light of the explosion to reach us.

Messier 60 (NGC 4649), an elliptical galaxy, is also in the image and it is in the centre of the frame and NGC 4647 is slightly down and to the right of it. SN2022hrs looks like a bright star in front of the galaxy but it is actually an exploding star within the galaxy.

Mercury & M45 by Richard Bohner

Planet Mercury at the bottom & M45 (The Pleiades) above right taken on the 28th April 2022 at 2015 local time MST in Arizona, USA. Richard acquired this splendid image using a Canon 6D, 400mm tele f2.8, ISO 800 and 12 second exp.

Deep Sky imaging by Dr. Mike Rushton

Dr. Mike Rushton took advantage of some clear skies recently (25th April 2022) and took these 3 super deepsky images using his eVscope of Messier 13, Messier 51 and the Bow Tie Nebula.

Messier 13 (M13) also designated NGC 6205 and also called the Great Globular Cluster in Hercules and the Hercules Globular Cluster, is a globular cluster of a several hundred thousand stars in the constellation of Hercules.

Messier 51, known as The Whirlpool Galaxy and as Messier 51a, M51a, and NGC 5194, is a spiral galaxy found in the constellation Canes Venatici, M51 was the first galaxy to be classified as a spiral galaxy and is 31 million light-years away from Earth.

The Bow Tie Nebula also designated NGC 40 and Caldwell 2 is a planetary nebula discovered by William Herschel in 1788. It is composed of hot gas around a dying star. The nebula gets its name from the fact it has an intriguing bow-tie shape.

Diane Clarke’s The Moon & M45 The Pleiades on the 8th March 2022

A lovely image of the Moon 4.1° south of M45 taken on the 8th March 2022 by Diane Clarke.

Diane said ”I had my doubts about capturing this event due to the cloud forecast, but there were breaks starting to appear as 19.00 hrs approached, so I went to set up but there was a strong breeze forcing me to find a sheltered spot to stop my equipment suffering wind blast, the breeze was also making the clouds scud across the sky very quickly. So much so that any breaks in the cloud could disappear as quickly as they appeared the image was taken in one of these short lived break’s in the cloud cover.”

Image Details: Camera EOS M50m2 using a 100mm Canon EF Lens.

2.5 sec’s @ f5.6, ISO 2000, on a static tripod, with a 2 sec delay to remove camera shake.

Open Cluster, Messier 35, NGC2168

An open cluster of stars in the northern constellation of Gemini

Images by Neil Webster

M-35-NGC-2158 — Image by Neil Webster – No details provided

Globular Cluster, Messier 5, M5

Messier 5 or M5 (also designated NGC 5904) is a globular cluster in the constellation Serpens – read more on wikipedia

Images by Neil Webster

M5-May-2020-jpeg — Image by Neil Webster – No Details Provided

Globular Cluster, M3, Messier3

Messier 3 is a globular cluster in the constellation of Canes Venatici.

It was discovered on May 3, 1764, and was the first Messier object to be discovered by Charles Messier.

Images by Leigh Slomer

Image by Leigh Slomer – no details provided

Images by Simon Dawes

M3-2020-03-25 — Image by Simon Dawes SkyWatcher, MN190, EQ6, ZWO ASI1600MM

Open Cluster, M34, NGC1039

Messier 34, is an open cluster in the constellation of Perseus

Images by Neil Webster

Christmas Imaging Session

About a dozen members used the 16″ telescope over the Christmas period with Keith providing a demonstration of the set-up and use of the new CCD.

The evening ended with cloud relatively early but they did get 10 light frames and below is a stack of these using Astro Pixel Processor.

M33CMHADS360s — Image by CMHASD Members. 16″ LX200, total of 360s unfiltered.

Open Cluster, Messier 38, NGC1912

Messier 38 also known as NGC1912 is an open cluster in Auriga visible in a small telescope and binoculars. Also nearby are open clusters M36 and M37

Images by Simon Dawes

M36_M38-2019-04-04-EXP31m-49sAPPv2

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

Open Cluster, Messier 36, NGC1960

M36 also known as NGC1960 is one of the open clusters in Auriga, visible in a small telescope or binoculars. Also close by is M37 and M38.

Images by Simon Dawes

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

Edge on Spirial, M108, NGC5536

Messier 108 also known as NGC 3556 is an edge on barred spiral galaxy in Ursa Major. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781 or 1782.

Images by Neil Webster

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

M97, NGC3587, The Owl Nebula

M97, The Owl Nebula or NGC 3587 is a planetary nebula in the Ursa Major. It was discovered by French astronomer Pierre Méchain on February 16, 1781. When William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse, observed the nebula in 1848, his drawing looked like an owl’s head and it has been known as the Owl Nebula ever since.

It is reasonably bright and imaging with an OIII filter will really help bring out the contrast in our light polluted skies.

Images by Neil Webster

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

The Pleiades, Mars and the California Nebula

In April 2019 Mars was close to M45 (the Pleiades) and NGC 1499 and this coincided with the Kelling Heath Star Party. Unfortunately at this time of year Taurus is very low, setting in the late evening making this a difficult object to image, my attempts to stack and then process with Deep Sky Stacker were hopeless, so I turned to Astro Pixel Processor (using a 30 day free trial) which has a very easy to use light pollution killer, this allowed me to remove the gradient that resulted from the very low elevation and trees that crept into the field.

Total exposure is 84 minutes, from 30s subs. Tracking was achieved with an iOptron Star tracker, camera was a Canon 600D with a full spectrum mod and a CLSCCD clip-in filter.

Mars_Pleiades_California_Nebula_48m-50pc_resize_for_BAA

Open Cluster, M46, NGC2437

Messier 46 also known as NGC2437 is an open cluster discovered in 1771 by Charles Messier. it is a very bright and very rich open cluster of about 500 stars and as a bonus the planetary nebula NGC 2438 appears to lie within the cluster near its northern edge, but in reality it is most likely unrelated.

If you are looking at M46 why not also have a look at M47.which is only about a degree west of M46, so the two fit well in a binocular or wide-angle telescope field.

Images by Neil Webster

M46 NGC 2438

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

The Cooling Tower, Open Cluster, Messier 29, NGC6913

M 29, also known as NGC 6913, is an open cluster of star in the Cygnus constellation. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1764, and can be seen from Earth by using binoculars.

This cluster can be seen in binoculars. In telescopes, lowest powers are best. The brightest stars of Messier 29 form a “stubby dipper”, as Mallas says it. The four brightest stars form a quadrilateral, and another three, a triangle north of them. It is often known as the “cooling tower” due to its resemblance to the hyperboloid-shaped structures. A few fainter stars are around them, but the cluster appears quite isolated, especially in smaller telescopes. In photographs, a large number of very faint Milky Way background stars shows up.

Messier 29 can be found quite easily as it is about 1.7 degrees south and little east of Gamma or 37 Cygni (Sadr). In the vicinity of Messier 29, there is some diffuse nebulosity which can be detected in photographs.

Images by Neil Webster

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

Spindle galaxy, M102, NGC5866

M102 is a galaxy listed in the Messier Catalogue that has not been identified unambiguously. Its original discoverer Pierre Méchain later said that it was a duplicate observation of Messier 101, but more recent historical evidence favours that it is NGC 5866, although other galaxies have been suggested as possible identities.

NGC 5866 (one of two galaxies commonly called the Spindle Galaxy) is a lenticular galaxy in the constellation Draco. This galaxy appears to closely match both the object description (by Pierre Méchain) in the printed version of the Messier Catalogue of 1781, and the object position given by Charles Messier in hand-written notes on his personal list of the Messier Catalogue.

Images by Simon Dawes

Pinwheel Galaxy, M101, NGC5457

The Pinwheel Galaxy (also known as Messier 101, M101 or NGC 5457) is a face-on spiral galaxy distanced 21 million light-years (six megaparsecs) away from Earth in the constellation Ursa Major. First discovered by Pierre Méchain on March 27, 1781, it was communicated to Charles Messier who verified its position for inclusion in the Messier Catalogue as one of its final entries.

Images by Kevin Langford

Images By Julian Tworek

Images by Neil Webster

Images by Simon Dawes

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

Spirial galaxy, M95, NGC3351

Messier 95, also known as M95 or NGC 3351, is a barred spiral galaxy located about 38 million light-years away in the zodiac constellation Leo. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781, and catalogued by fellow French astronomer Charles Messier four days later. On 16 March 2012, a supernova was discovered in M95.

Images By Julian Tworek

Globular Cluster, M92, NGC6341

Messier 92 (also known as NGC6341) is a globular cluster of stars in the northern constellation of Hercules. It was discovered by Johann Elert Bode in 1777, then published in the Jahrbuch during 1779. The cluster was independently rediscovered by Charles Messier on March 18, 1781 and added as the 92nd entry in his catalogue. M92 is at a distance of about 26,700 light-years away from Earth.

M92 is one of the brighter globular clusters in the northern hemisphere, but it is often overlooked by amateur astronomers because of its proximity to the even more spectacular Messier 13. It is visible to the naked eye under very good conditions.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Keith Rickard

The Little Bumbbell Nebula, M76, NGC650

The Little Dumbbell Nebula, also known as Messier 76, NGC 650/651, the Barbell Nebula, or the Cork Nebula, is a planetary nebula in the constellation Perseus. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1780 and included in Charles Messier’s catalogue of comet-like objects as number 76. It was first recognised as a planetary nebula in 1918 by the astronomer Heber Doust Curtis. However, there is some contention to this claim, as Isaac Roberts in 1891 did suggest that M76 might be similar to the Ring Nebula (M57), being instead as seen from the side view. The structure is now classed as a bipolar planetary nebula (BPNe).Distance to M76 is currently estimated as 780 parsecs or 2,500 light years, making the average dimensions about 0.378 pc. (1.23 ly.) across.

The total nebula shines at the apparent magnitude of +10.1 with its central star or planetary nebula nucleus (PNN) at +15.9v (16.1B) magnitude. The UV-light from the PNN is expanding outer layers that form the present nebula, and has the surface temperature of about 88,400 K. The whole planetary nebula is approaching us at 19.1 km/s.

The Little Dumbbell Nebula derives its common name from its resemblance to the Dumbbell Nebula (M27) in Vulpecula. It was originally thought to consist of two separate emission nebulae and was thus given two catalogue numbers in the NGC 650 and 651. Some consider this object to be one of the faintest and hardest to see.

Images by Andrew Wilson

Images by Simon Dawes

Phantom Galaxy, M74, NGC628

Messier 74 (also known as NGC 628 and Phantom Galaxy) is a spiral galaxy in the constellation Pisces. It is at a distance of about 32 million light-years away from Earth. The galaxy contains two clearly defined spiral arms and is therefore used as an archetypal example of a grand design spiral galaxy. The galaxy’s low surface brightness makes it the most difficult Messier object for amateur astronomers to observe. It is estimated that M74 is home to about 100 billion stars.

Images by Andrew Wilson

Black Eye Galaxy, M64, NGC4826

The Black Eye Galaxy (also called Evil Eye Galaxy; designated Messier 64, M64, or NGC 4826) is a galaxy which was discovered by Edward Pigott in March 1779, and independently by Johann Elert Bode in April of the same year, as well as by Charles Messier in 1780. It has a spectacular dark band of absorbing dust in front of the galaxy’s bright nucleus, giving rise to its nicknames of the “Black Eye” or “Evil Eye” galaxy. M64 is well known among amateur astronomers because of its appearance in small telescopes. It is a spiral galaxy in the Coma Berenices constellation.

Images by Andrew Wilson

Sunflower galaxy, M63, NGC5055

Messier 63 (also known as NGC 5055, or the Sunflower Galaxy) is a spiral galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici consisting of a central disc surrounded by many short spiral arm segments, the galaxy form known as flocculent. M63 is part of the M51 Group, a group of galaxies that also includes M51 (the ‘Whirlpool Galaxy’). M63 is an active galaxy with a LINER nucleus. The existence of a super massive black hole at the nucleus is uncertain; if it does exist, then the mass is estimated as (8.5±1.9)×10^8 M☉.

Images by Andrew Wilson

Open Cluster, M39, NGC7092

Messier 39 (also known as NGC 7092) is a loose open cluster with about 30 members, in the constellation of Cygnus. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1764. M39 is at a distance of about 326 pc (1,060 ly) from Earth whose age is estimated to be from 278 million years.

Images by Neil Webster

Open Cluster, M35, NGC2158

Messier 35 (also known as NGC 2168) is an open cluster in the constellation Gemini. It was discovered by Philippe Loys de Chéseaux in 1745 and independently discovered by John Bevis before 1750. The cluster is scattered over an area of the sky almost the size of the full moon and is located 850 parsecs (2,800 light-years) from Earth.

The mass of M35 has been computed using a statistical technique based on proper motion velocities of its stars.[3] The mass within the central 3.75 parsecs was found to be between 1600 and 3200 solar masses (95 percent confidence), consistent with the mass of a realistic stellar population within the same radius.

Images by Neil Webster

Galaxy, M110, NGC205

Messier 110 (also known as M110 and NGC 205) is a dwarf elliptical galaxy that is a satellite of the Andromeda Galaxy. M110 contains some dust and hints of recent star formation, which is unusual for dwarf elliptical galaxies in general.

Although Charles Messier never included the galaxy in his famous list, it was depicted by him, together with M32, on a drawing of the Andromeda galaxy; a label on the drawing indicates that Messier first observed NGC 205 on August 10, 1773. The galaxy was independently discovered by Caroline Herschel on August 27, 1783; her brother William Herschel described her discovery in 1785. The suggestion to assign the galaxy a Messier number was made by Kenneth Glyn Jones in 1967.
In 1999, Johnson and Modjaz discovered a nova in M110.

Images by Martin Crow

Images by Debra Holton

Lenticular galaxy, M85, NGC4382

Messier 85 (also known as M85 or NGC 4382) is a lenticular galaxy (type S0) in the Coma Berenices constellation. It is 60 million light years away, making it the 94th most distant Messier object, and it estimated to be 125,000 light years across. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781. It is the northern most outlier of the Virgo cluster. The type I supernova, 1960R was discovered in M85 on Dec 20, 1960 and reached an apparent magnitude of 11.7. M85 is interacting with the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 4394, and a small elliptical galaxy called MCG 3-32-38.

Image’s by Debra Holton

Cigar Galaxy, M82, NGC3034

Messier 82 (also known as NGC 3034 or the Cigar Galaxy) is a nearby starburst galaxy about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. The starburst galaxy is five times as bright as the whole Milky Way and one hundred times as bright as our galaxy’s centre.
In 2005, the Hubble revealed 197 young massive clusters in the starburst core. The average mass of these clusters is around 2 × 105 solar masses, hence the starburst core is a very energetic and high-density environment. Throughout the galaxy’s centre, young stars are being born 10 times faster than they are inside our entire Milky Way Galaxy.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Julian Tworek

Images by Neil Webster

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

Bode’s Galaxy, M81, NGC3031

Messier 81 is a spiral galaxy about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. M81 is one of the most striking examples of a grand design spiral galaxy, with near perfect arms spiralling into the very centre. Because of its proximity to Earth, its large size, and its active galactic nucleus (which harbours a 70 million solar mass supermassive black hole). It is close by M82 which is also worth a look if you are in this region.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Julian Tworek

Images by Neil Webster

Images by Kevin Langford

Images by Leigh Slomer

20210307_120345 — Bode’s Galaxy, taken on the 6th of April 2021 with a Skywatcher Evostar 72ed Pro and an astro modified Canon EOS 250d. Stacked grom 172 minutes worth of exposures.

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

Globular Cluster, M71, NGC6838

Messier 71 (also known as NGC 6838) is a globular cluster in the constellation Sagitta. It was discovered by Philippe Loys de Chéseaux in 1745 and included by Charles Messier in his catalogue of comet-like objects in 1780. It was also noted by Koehler at Dresden around 1775.

The star cluster is at a distance of about 12,000 light years away from Earth and spans some 27 light years across. The irregular variable star Z Sagittae is a member of this cluster.

M71 was long thought (until the 1970s) to be a densely packed open cluster, however, modern photometric photometry has detected a short “horizontal branch” in the H-R diagram of M71, which is characteristic of a globular cluster.

Images By Simon Dawes

Images By Debra Holton

Images By Andrew Wilson

Leo Triplet, M66, NGC3627

Messier 66 (also known as NGC 3627) is an intermediate spiral galaxy about 36 million light-years away in the constellation Leo. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1780. M66 is about 95 thousand light-years across with striking dust lanes and bright star clusters along sweeping spiral arms. M66 is part of the famous Leo Triplet, a small group of galaxies that also includes M65 and NGC 3628.

Images by Martin Crow

Images by Julian Tworek

Images by Andrew Wilson

Leo Triplet, M65, NGC3623

M65 is part of the Leo triplet along with M66 and NGC3628. The galaxy is low in dust and gas, and there is little star formation in it, although there has been some relatively recently in the arms. The ratio of old stars to new stars is correspondingly quite high. In most wavelengths it is quite uninteresting, though there is a radio source visible in the NVSS, offset from the core by about two arc-minutes. The identity of the source is uncertain, as it has not been identified visually, or formally studied in any published papers.

Images by Martin Crow

Images by Julian Tworek

Images by Andrew Wilson

Barred spiral galaxy, M61, NGC4303

Messier 61 (also known as NGC 4303) is an intermediate barred spiral galaxy in the Virgo Cluster of galaxies. It was discovered by Barnaba Oriani on May 5, 1779. This was six days before Charles Messier observed the same galaxy, but had mistaken it as a comet.

Images by Debra Holton

The Ring Nebula, M57, NGC6720

The Ring Nebula (also known as NGC 6720) is a planetary nebula in the northern constellation of Lyra. Such objects are formed when a shell of ionized gas is expelled into the surrounding interstellar medium by a red giant star, which was passing through the last stage in its evolution before becoming a white dwarf.

Images by Gordon Collins

Images by Martin Crow

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Debra Holton

Images by Keith Rickard

Images by David Sheehan

Images by Julian Tworek

Images by Andrew Wilson

Globular Cluster, M56, NGC6779

Messier 56 (also known as NGC 6779) is a globular cluster in the constellation Lyra. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1779. M56 is at a distance of about 32,900 light-years from Earth and measures roughly 84 light-years across.
The brightest stars in M56 are of 13th magnitude while it contains only about a dozen known variable stars like V6 (RV Tauri star; period: 90 days) or V1 (Cepheid: 1.510 days); other variable stars are V2 (irregular) and V3 (semiregular).

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Debra Holton

Images by Andrew Wilson

Globular Cluster, M53, NGC5024

Messier 53 (also known as NGC 5024) is a globular cluster in the Coma Berenices constellation. It was discovered by Johann Elert Bode in 1775. M53 is one of the more outlying globular clusters, being about 60,000 light-years away from the Galactic Centre, and almost the same distance (about 58,000 light-years) from the Solar system.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Andrew Wilson

Open Cluster, M52, NGC7654

Messier 52 (also known as NGC 7654) is an open cluster in the Cassiopeia constellation. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1774. M52 can be seen from Earth with binoculars.

Close by is also the bubble nebula

Images by Simon Dawes

The Whirlpool galaxy, M51, NGC5194

The Whirlpool Galaxy (also known as NGC 5194) is an interacting grand-design spiral galaxy located at a distance of approximately 23 million light-years in the constellation Canes Venatici. It is one of the most famous spiral galaxies in the sky. The galaxy and its companion (NGC 5195) are easily observed by amateur astronomers, and the two galaxies may even be seen with binoculars. The Whirlpool Galaxy is also a popular target for professional astronomers, who study it to further understand galaxy structure (particularly structure associated with the spiral arms) and galaxy interactions.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Kevin Langford

Images by Roger Pickard

Images by Keith Rickard

Images By Julian Tworek

Images by Andrew Wilson

| M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M5 | M6 | M7 | M8| M9 | M10 | M11 | M12 | M13 | M14 | M15 | M16 | M17 | M18 | M19 | M20 | M21 | M22 | M23 | M24 | M25 | M26 | M27 | M28 | M29 | M30 | M31 | M32 | M33 | M34 | M35 | M36 | M37 | M38 | M39 | M40 | M41 | M42 | M43 | M44 | M45 | M46 | M47 | M48 | M49 | M50 | M51 | M52 | M53 | M54 | M55 | M56 | M57 | M58 | M59 | M60 | M61 | M62 | M63 | M64 | M65| M66 | M67 | M68 | M69 | M70 | M71 | M72 | M73 | M74 | M75 | M76 | M77 | M78 | M79 | M80 | M81 | M82 | M83 | M84 | M85 | M86 | M87 | M88 | M89 | M90 | M91 | M92 | M93 | M94 | M95 | M96 | M97 | M98 | M99 | M100 | M101 | M102 | M103 | M104 | M105 | M106 | M107 | M108 | M109 | M110 |

All images are copyright. Permission must be sought to from the image owner to the use of any of these images.

The Beehive Cluster, M44, NGC2632

The Beehive Cluster (also known as Praesepe (Latin for “manger”), M44, NGC 2632, or Cr 189) is an open cluster in the constellation Cancer. It is one of the nearest open clusters to the Solar System, and it contains a larger star population than most other nearby clusters. Under dark skies the Beehive Cluster looks like a nebulous object to the naked eye; thus it has been known since ancient times. The classical astronomer Ptolemy called it “the nebulous mass in the breast of Cancer,” and it was among the first objects that Galileo studied with his telescope.

Martin Crow Images

De Mairan’s Nebula, M43, NGC1982

Messier 43 (also known De Mairan’s Nebula, and NGC 1982) is an H II region in the Orion constellation. It was discovered by Jean-Jacques Dortous de Mairan before 1731. The De Mairan’s Nebula is part of the Orion Nebula, separated from the main nebula by a lane of dust. It is part of the much larger Orion Molecular Cloud Complex.

M43 is in many of our images of M42

Julian Tworek’s Images

Triangulum galaxy, M33, NGC598

The Triangulum Galaxy (also known as NGC 598) is a spiral galaxy approximately 3 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum. The galaxy is also sometimes informally referred to as the Pinwheel Galaxy by some amateur astronomy references and in some public outreach websites. However, the SIMBAD Astronomical Database, a professional astronomy database that contains formal designations for astronomical objects, indicates that the name “Pinwheel Galaxy” is used to refer to Messier 101, and several other amateur astronomy resources and other public outreach websites also identify Messier 101 by that name. It is the third largest galaxy in the Local Group, a group of galaxies that also contains the Milky Way Galaxy and the Andromeda Galaxy, and it may be a gravitationally bound companion of the Andromeda Galaxy. The Pisces Dwarf (LGS 3), one of the small Local Group member galaxies, is possibly a satellite of Triangulum.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Martin Crow

Images by Julian Tworek

Images by Neil Webster

Images by Andrew Wilson

Images by Leigh Slomer

Images by Keith Rickard

The Andromeda Galaxy, M31, NGC224

The Andromeda Galaxy (also known as M31, or NGC 224 and often referred to as the Great Andromeda Nebula) is a spiral galaxy approximately 2.5 million light-years away in the constellation Andromeda. It is the nearest spiral galaxy to our own, the Milky Way. As it is visible as a faint smudge on a moonless night, it is one of the farthest objects visible to the naked eye, and can be seen even from urban areas with binoculars.

Images by Leigh Slomer

M31 - Leight Slomer20200826_205920 — Image by Leigh Slomer Stacked from 30 x 2 minute light frames at ISO 1600 with 20 dark and 64 flat frames. Taken using a Skywatcher Evostar 72ed Pro telescope, a Canon Eos 250d astro modified dslr and a CLS filter. Mounted on a Skywatcher HEQ5 Pro mount, unguided. Stacked with Deep Sky Stacker and processed in GIMP.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Julian Tworek

Images by Martin Crow

Images by Honor Wheeler

Images by Janice McClean

The Eagle Nebula, M16, NGC6611

The Eagle Nebula (also known as M16 or NGC 6611), perhaps one of the most famous and easily recognized space objects, is a young open cluster of stars in the constellation Serpens, discovered by Jean-Philippe de Cheseaux in 1745-46. It is associated with a diffuse emission nebula, or H II region, which is catalogued as IC 4703. This region of active current star formation is about 7,000 light-years distant. The brightest star in the nebula has an apparent magnitude of 8.24, easily visible with good binoculars.

Images by Debra Holton

Images by Andrew Wilson

Globular Cluster, M15, NGC7078

Globular Cluster M15 (also known as NGC 7078) is a globular cluster in the constellation Pegasus. It was discovered by Jean-Dominique Maraldi in 1746 and included in Charles Messier’s catalogue of comet-like objects in 1764. It is estimated to be 13.2 billion years old, one of the oldest globular clusters.

M15 is at a distance of about 33,600 light-years from Earth. It has an absolute magnitude of -9.2 which translates to a total luminosity of 360,000 times that of the Sun. Messier 15 is one of the most densely packed globulars known in the Milky Way galaxy.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Neil Webster

Messier-15-August-2020 — Image by Neil Webster – details not provided

Globular Cluster, M14, NGC6402

Messier 14 (also known as NGC 6402) is a globular cluster in the constellation Ophiuchus. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1764.

At a distance of about 30,000 light-years, M14 contains several hundred thousand stars. At an apparent magnitude of +7.6 it can be easily observed with binoculars. Medium-sized telescopes will show some hint of the individual stars of which the brightest is of magnitude +14.

The total luminosity of M14 is in the order of 400,000 times that of the Sun corresponding to an absolute magnitude of -9.12. The shape of the cluster is decidedly elongated. M14 is about 100 light-years across.

Imaged by Debra Holton

Globular Cluster, M12, NGC6218

M12 (also known as NGC 6218) is a globular cluster in the constellation Ophiuchus. It was discovered by Charles Messier on May 30, 1764.

Located roughly 3° from the cluster M10, M12 is about 16,000 light-years distant and has a spatial diameter of ~75 light-years. The brightest stars of M12 are of 12th magnitude. It is rather loosely packed for a globular and M12 was once thought to be a tightly concentrated open cluster.

Images by Andrew Wilson

Globular Cluster, M10, NGC6254

M10 (also known NGC 6254) is a globular cluster in the constellation Ophiuchus. It was discovered by Charles Messier on May 29, 1764, it was described as a “Nebula without stars.”

M10 has an apparent diameter of some 20′, about 2/3 the apparent diameter of the moon, which translates to a spatial diameter of 83 light-years at its estimated distance of 14,300 light-years. Viewed through medium sized telescopes it appears about half that size (8′ to 9′), as its brighter core is only 35 light-years across.

Images by Andrew Wilson

Globular Cluster, M9, NGC6333

Messier 9 (also known NGC 6333) is a globular cluster in the constellation Ophiuchus. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1764.

M9 is one of the nearer globular clusters to the centre of the Milky Way Galaxy with a distance of around 5,500 light-years. Its distance from Earth is 25,800 light-years. The total luminosity of this cluster is around 120,000 times that of the Sun, the absolute magnitude being -8.04.

The brightest individual stars in M9 are of apparent magnitude 13.5, making them visible in moderately sized telescopes. There have been 13 variable stars found in M9.

Images by Andy Wilson

The Lagoon Nebula, M8, NGC6523

The Lagoon Nebula (also known as M8 and NGC 6523) is a giant interstellar cloud, classified as an emission nebula and H II region, in the constellation Sagittarius. At an estimated distance of 4,100 light-years, the Lagoon is one of only two star-forming nebulae faintly visible to the naked eye from mid-northern latitudes. In binoculars, the Lagoon is a distinct oval cloudlike patch with a definite core, like a pale celestial flower. The nebula has a fragile star cluster superimposed on it, making this one of the leading celestial sights of summer night skies.

Image by Keith Rickard

The Crab Nebula, M1, NGC1952

The Crab Nebula (catalogue designations M1, NGC 1952, Taurus A) is a supernova remnant and pulsar wind nebula in the constellation of Taurus.

The nebula was first observed by John Bevis, and corresponds to a bright supernova recorded by Chinese and Arab astronomers in 1054. Located at a distance of about 6,500 light-years (2 kpc) from Earth, the nebula has a diameter of 11 ly (3.4 pc) and expands at a rate of about 1,500 kilometres per second.

At the centre of the nebula lies the Crab Pulsar, a rotating neutron star, which emits pulses of radiation from gamma rays to radio waves with a spin rate of 30.2 times per second. The nebula was the first astronomical object identified with a historical supernova explosion.

Images by Simon Dawes

Images by Kevin Langford

Images by Keith Rickard

Images By Julian Tworek

Images by Andrew Wilson

The Great Globular Cluster in Hercules, M13, NGC 6205

The Great Globular Cluster in Hercules (also known as M13, or NGC 6205) is a globular cluster in you guessed it the constellation of Hercules.

It was discovered by Edmond Halley in 1714, and catalogued by Charles Messier on June 1, 1764.

With an apparent magnitude of 5.8, it is barely visible with the naked eye on a very clear night from a dark site, (unlike the Crayford area). Its real diameter is about 145 light-years, and it is composed of several hundred thousand stars, the brightest of which is the variable star V11 with an apparent magnitude of 11.95. M13 is 25,100 light-years away from Earth.
Its diameter is about 23 arc minutes and it is readily viewable in small telescopes.

The Arecibo message of 1974 was transmitted toward this globular cluster. The reason was that with a higher star density the chances of a life harbouring planet, with intelligent life forms, were higher.

Images of M13 by Simon Dawes

Images of M13 by Brian Thompson

Images of M13 by Martin Crow

Images by Neil Webster

The Dumbbell Nebula, M27, NGC6853

The Dumbbell Nebula (also known as Messier 27, M 27, or NGC 6853) is a planetary nebula in the constellation Vulpecula, at a distance of about 1360 light years.

This object was the first planetary nebula to be discovered; by Charles Messier in 1764. At a brightness of magnitude 7.5 and its diameter of about 8 arcminutes, it is easily visible in binoculars, and a popular observing target in amateur telescopes.

Images by Leigh Slomer

Brian Thompson’s Images of M27

Simon Dawes Images of M27

Martin Crow’s Images of M27

Gordon Collins’ Images of M27

Keith Rickard’s Images of M27

Andrew Wilson’s Images of M27

Debra Holton’s Images of M27

Julian Tworek’s Images of M27

Images by Neil Webster

The Great Orion Nebula, M42

The Orion Nebula (also known as M42, or NGC 1976) is a diffuse nebula situated south of Orion’s Belt. It is one of the brightest nebulae, and is visible to the naked eye in the night sky – even on a good evening in Bexleyheath.

M42 is located at a distance of 1,270±76 light years and is the closest region of massive star formation to Earth. The M42 nebula is estimated to be 24 light years across.

The Orion Nebula is one of the most scrutinized and photographed objects in the night sky, and is among the most intensely studied celestial features. The nebula has revealed much about the process of how stars and planetary systems are formed from collapsing clouds of gas and dust. Astronomers have directly observed protoplanetary disks, brown dwarfs, intense and turbulent motions of the gas, and the photo-ionizing effects of massive nearby stars in the nebula.

M42 Images by Simon Dawes

M42 Images by Julian Tworek

M42 Images by Brian Thompson

M42 Images by Honor Wheeler

M42 Images by Martin Crow

M42 Images by Keith Rickard

Images by Leigh Slomer

M42 Images by Andy Wilson

Images by Neil Webster

Images by Steve Goldson

M45, The Pleiades

The Pleiades (M45) are an open star cluster in the constellation of Taurus. It is among the nearest star clusters. It is the cluster most obvious to the naked eye in the night sky. Pleiades has several meanings in different cultures and traditions.
The cluster is dominated by hot blue stars that have formed within the last 100 million years. Dust that forms a faint reflection nebulosity around the brightest stars was thought at first to be left over from the formation of the cluster (hence the alternate name Maia Nebula after the star Maia), but is now known to be an unrelated dust cloud in the interstellar medium that the stars are currently passing through. Astronomers estimate that the cluster will survive for about another 250 million years, after which it will disperse due to gravitational interactions with its galactic neighbourhood.

Images by Simon Dawes

Imaged by Simon Dawes.
William Optics ED80, Canon 650D, 105m integration

Images by Honor Wheeler

Images by Neil Webster

M45-PLEIADES-Dec-2020-jpeg — Image by Neil Webster – no Details Provided

Image by Brian Thompson

Date: 18/02/2015
Equipment: Orion Optics VX10 scope, Skywatcher NEQ6 mount, Mono Atik 383L camera, QHY5 Guide Camera.
Frames:13 X 120s lights, no darks.
Processing: Stacked and processed in Astro Art.

Imaged by: Andrew Wilson
Method: MX916 CCD with 35mm lens, 10 x 5 seconds

Imaged by Keith Rickard
Method: Olympus OM1n 210mm telephoto lens, piggy-backed on LX200 8″, Kodak Elitechrome ISO 200 film, 20 minutes. (Published in Astronomy Now!)

Imaged by Martin Crow at Kelling Heath Star Party 2012

Imaged by Julian Tworek
Instrument: AstroTrac Canon 100-400 lens @ 200mm ISO1600 13 x 120s Images Canon 20D (Modified)
Details: Taken at Kelling heath Star Party

The Leo Triplet – M65, M66 and NGC3628

NGC 3628 is an unbarred spiral galaxy about 35 million light-years away in the constellation Leo. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1784. It has an approximately 300,000 light-years long tidal tail. NGC 3628 along with M65 and M66 form the famous Leo Triplet, a small group of galaxies. Its most conspicuous feature is the broad and obscuring band of dust located along the outer edge of its spiral arms, effectively transecting the galaxy to our view.

Imaged by Martin Crow.

80mm Equinox ED Refractor @ f6 with Canon 400D, 8 x 60s

Altair Astro AO EQ6-R, ZWO ASI294MC Pro

Total exposure ~4hrs
St Mary’s Platt, Kent.

Image by Kevin Langford