M31

M31 - The Great Andromeda Galaxy (38 hours OSC)

The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is a spiral galaxy approximately 2.5 million light-years from Earth, and the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way. The galaxy's name stems from the area of the Earth's sky in which it appears, the constellation of Andromeda.

The combined mass of the Andromeda Galaxy is of the same order of magnitude as that of the Milky Way, at a trillion solar masses. The smaller galaxies alongside are M32 and M110.

The number of stars contained in the Andromeda Galaxy is estimated at one trillion, or roughly twice the number estimated for the Milky Way. Now just think of how many planets are orbiting those stars, perhaps some with intelligent life.

Captured with 38 hours of OSC data (765 x 180s)

OTA: Askar SQA106

Mount: iOptron CEM70-NUC

Camera: 2400mc Pro full frame

Gain: 158

Cooling Temperature: -10 degrees celsius

Auto-focusing: ZWO EAF

Control: ZWO ASIAIR Plus

Calibrated and processed in Pixinsight

Imaged from Flagstaff, Arizona in class 2 Bortle skies -

copyright: Drew Evans