Messier Challenge - M 104 Spiral Galaxy

M 104 in Virgo 23rd March 2020 @ 02:37 UT

The classic M 104, Sombrero Galaxy. Its dusty edge on appearance is immediately obvious after the first frame hits your screen.

M104 - Virgo

Image: 15 seconds x 90 frames (1350 seconds total), gain 6584, bin 2x2, Raw 14, black level 99, camera temperature 10 deg C, 1 dark. Stacked in SharpCap Pro 3.2.6248.0. The image was stacked and adjusted in SharpCap. The image was scaled down and cropped in GIMP.

M 104 - processed too much in GIMP

I wanted to bring out the classic M 104 appearance so I adjusted the curves in GIMP.

Equipment: Celestron CPC-800 at F5.9, Alt-Az mount, Altair Astro Hypercam 294C Pro Cooled (fan), Celestron Focuser, CPWI controlled remotely via Microsoft RDP and ASCOM.

Astrometry: M 104 is 28 million light years distant.

Charles Messier added M 104 in 1921 by Camille Flammarion.