New Project...Messier

My new project - Image all 110 Messier objects.  The Messier Catalog, of course named in honor of Charles Messier, a French astronomer, who in the 1700's while searching for comets began cataloging other objects so they would not be confused with comets to be discovered.

I have previously imaged the following: M3-Globular Cluster, M4 - Globular Cluster, M8-Lagoon Nebula, M13-Globular Cluster, M27-Planetary Nebula, M31-Andromeda Galaxy, M32-Galaxy, M42, Great Orion Nebula, M45-Pleiades Star Cluster, M57-Planetary Nebula, M110-Galaxy.  I plan to organize this better and may re-image some of these as time goes on and I improve my technique.

The Lagoon and more...

Finally a clear night. We don't get many here in southern Connecticut. The following images were taken on Thursday 7/16/15 from my favorite location very close to my house. Also this was a beta test for the my autoguider setup. It is basically the Orion Awesome AutoGuider Refractor Telescope Package only the Orion StarShootAutoguider Camera is replaced with the Orion StarShoot G3 Deep Sky Imaging Camera. I purchased the G3 camera at the start of this hobby but switched to a DSLR as they are easier to manage and more versatile. So the G3 finally has an important job.



M8 - Lagoon Nebula (mag +6.0)
Location: Monroe, CT
Date/Time: 7/16/15 23:45 PM
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i, Backyard EOS
Telescope: Orion ED80 80mm f/7.5 Apochromatic Refractor Telescope
Mount: Orion Sirius EQ-G GoTo Telescope Mount
Autoguiding: Orion Short Tube 80mm, Orion StarShoot G3
Focal Length: 600mm (lens)
f/7.5
Exposure: 5-60s (5 min total)
ISO: 800
Post Processing: DSS, Photoshop (Darken, Contrast), Picasa3 (crop)

Note:
The Lagoon Nebula is located in Sagittarius between 4000-6000 light years from Earth. The full dimensions are 110 by 50 light years. For perspective the distance to Proxima Centauri, nearest star to our sun is only 4.24 light years.



M8 - Lagoon Nebula (mag +6.0)
Location: Monroe, CT
Date/Time: 7/16/15 23:45 PM
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i, Backyard EOS
Telescope: Orion ED80 80mm f/7.5 Apochromatic Refractor Telescope
Mount: Orion Sirius EQ-G GoTo Telescope Mount
Autoguiding: Orion Short Tube 80mm, Orion StarShoot G3
Focal Length: 600mm (lens)
f/7.5
Exposure: 5-60s (5 min total)
ISO: 800
Post Processing: DSS, Photoshop (Darken, Contrast)



Antares and M4 (mag +1.09 and 5.9)
Location: Monroe, CT
Date/Time: 7/16/15 23:23 PM
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i, Backyard EOS
Telescope: Orion ED80 80mm f/7.5 Apochromatic Refractor Telescope
Mount: Orion Sirius EQ-G GoTo Telescope Mount
Autoguiding: Orion Short Tube 80mm, Orion StarShoot G3
Focal Length: 600mm (lens)
f/7.5
Exposure: 3-100s (5 min total)
ISO: 800
Post Processing: DSS, Photoshop (Darken, Contrast)

Note:
The Antares is the bright star in Scorpius and is a red supergiant larger than the orbit of Mars approximately 550 light years from Earth. M4 is a globular cluster approximately 7200 light years from Earth and estimated to be 12.2 by old.



Antares and M4 (mag +1.09 and 5.9)
Location: Monroe, CT
Date/Time: 7/16/15 22:49 PM
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i, Backyard EOS
Telescope: Orion ED80 80mm f/7.5 Apochromatic Refractor Telescope
Mount: Orion Sirius EQ-G GoTo Telescope Mount
Autoguiding: Orion Short Tube 80mm, Orion StarShoot G3
Focal Length: 600mm (lens)
f/7.5
Exposure: 3-300s (15 min total)
ISO: 800
Post Processing: DSS, Photoshop (Darken, Contrast), Picasa3 (Label)