M31 with Hydrogen-Alpha from Kraków and Lublin

Image Title: The Beauty of Andromeda - M31

Copyright: Marcin Rosadzinski and Marek Skowronek

Location: Data gathered in 2 locations in Poland: first is Kraków and second is Lublin

Data Acquisition Method: Personal Telescope Setup

Description and Details: I would like to present to you one of the most beautiful objects in the night sky, the well-known and loved Andromeda galaxy, i.e. M31.
This photo is the result of a project that we decided to do together with Marek Skowronek last year . The project is still open because its goal is to collect about 200 hours of material, the vast majority of which is to concern the Ha signal, so we will definitely continue collecting the hydrogen signal this fall . In the meantime, I decided to prepare an RGB version that I enhanced with the hydrogen signal, but only in the area of ​​the galaxy itself. In the photo, it is very clearly visible in the form of red pigtails on the spiral arms of the galaxy. The processing is entirely mine.

The Andromeda Galaxy is the closest large spiral galaxy to our Milky Way. It is located only about 2.5 million light-years from Earth. Andromeda is so large that its diameter is about 220 thousand light-years, making it one of the largest galaxies in our local Universe.Interestingly, Andromeda is a galaxy that will eventually collide with our Milky Way. This collision, although distant in time - it is predicted to occur in about 4 billion years - is already the subject of intensive research by astronomers.

Equipment and exif:
ZWO Asi2600MC Pro x 2
WO ZenithStar73+flattener / Askar 400
ZWO AM5 x2
ZWO Asi Air Plus x2
Pixinsight, PS
Ha Frames with Optolong L-Ultimate filter: 480x300s, Gain100, 40xDarks, 60Bias, 40Flats.
RGB frames without filter: 465x300s, Gain100, 40xDarks, 60Bias, 40Flats.
Total exposure time: about 80 hours.

Name: Marcin Rosadzinski, Marek Skowronek

Website or Facebook Profile: http://astrodream.pl