Facts
The Whirlpool Galaxy (also known as Messier 51a, M51a, or NGC 5194) is an interacting grand-design spiral galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici. Recently it was estimated to be 23 ± 4 million light-years from the Milky Way Galaxy, but different methods yield distances between 15 and 35 million ly. Messier 51 is one of the best known 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. (Wikipedia)
Date: 109.02.2013
Location: Backyard, Asker, NO
Camera: DSLR Canon EOS 7D
Optics: Celestron SCT 8″ 1260mm f6,3
Exposure: 21 x 3 min lightframes
20 x 3 min darkframes
20 x flatframes
20 x bias
ISO: 1600
Guiding: PHD Guiding
Starlight Xpress Lodestar
Post processing: DSS, PhotoShop CS5
Håvard's Observatory 