ELATE observatory - Velimir Popov

M82 - Cigar Galaxy (NGC 3034), irregular galaxy type Ir-II, in Ursa Major

LRGB combination - spikes added (Click for a larger view 1200 x 1200 px)

Details

M82 - Cigar Galaxy (NGC 3034), irregular galaxy type Ir-II, in Ursa Major

Discovered by Johann Elert Bode in 1774.

Messier 82 (M82, NGC 3034) is a remarkable galaxy of peculiar type in constellation Ursa Major. It is usually classified as irregular, though probably a distorted disk galaxy, and famous for its heavy star-forming activity, thus a prototype member of the class of starbursting galaxies. Forming a physical pair with its neighbor, M81, this galaxy is the prototype of an irregular of the second type, i.e. a "disk" irregular. A few tens of million years ago, a close encounter occurred between the galaxies M81 and M82. During this event, larger and more massive M81 has dramatically deformed M82 by gravitational interaction. M82's core seems to be in a heavy starburst. This turbulent explosive gas flow is also a strong source of radio noise, discovered by Henbury Brown in 1953.

Right Ascension	09 : 55.8 (h:m)
Declination	+69 : 41 (deg:m)
Distance	12 000 (kly)
Visual Brightness	8.4 (mag)
Apparent Dimension	9 x 4 (arc min)

Seeing:	Pickering 8 rating - Good to Excellent
Optic(s):	Celestron 11" Schmidt Cassegrain + TSSCKorr2" flattener @ f/8
Mount:	ASA DDM85 Premium
Camera:	ATIK 4000 - monochrome CCD – 2048 x 2048 px ; 16x16 mm; 7.4 µm x 7.4 µm
Filters:	Astronomics L, R, G, B set, SupaSlim TrueTechnology Computerized Filter Wheel
Dates/Times:	2012-04-27
Location:	Rozhen Observatory, BG, longitude: E 24 44' 18", latitude: N 41 41' 42"
Exposure Details:	L = 30 min, R = 30 min, G = 30 min, B = 30 min, (Bin 1), Subexposures = 10 min, Total Exposure Time - 120 min
More details:	Dark and flat frames reduction
Guiding:	All subexposures are unguided thanks to ASA DDM85 Premium mount
Processing:	PixInsight / PS

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