Date 2010	Location Mayhill, NM	Software ACP, MaxIm DL, TheSky6	Mount Software Bisque Paramount ME	Guide Atik 16IC, Astrodon MMOAG
Optic OGS/RCOS 10" RC	Camera Atik 11000C	Filter OSC RGB	Exposure 1200s x 27	Process Astroart 5, Photoshop CS5

Billions and Billions.com/M77

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 M77 and NGC 1055 in Cetus at lower left (also designated Arp 37) was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1780.  Oriented face-on to us, it is one of the largest galaxies in the Messier catalog with a central core measuring 120,000 light-years across!  Estimated to be 50-million ly from us, this barred-Sb-type spiral is a Seyfert galaxy with an extremely active core, emitting both plasma and X-rays.  Most interesting is its extended arm system, with prominent dark lanes clearly visible.  In the upper right corner is NGC 1055, located thirty arcseconds away.  This near edge-on is also an Sb spiral and is gravitationally bound to M77 in a system which includes several other smaller galaxies.  The beautiful golden-cored disk was discovered in 1783 by the great William Herschel and has a spectacular dust lane.  This data set was the first acquired by my OGS R-C.  Click for a larger version or return to the Gallery