M14 - Globular Cluster in Ophiuchus

Working with the ASI1600mm Pro mono camera is fun, also a chore, but the results are really worth the time and effort.  Although my mount is still pretty finicky at the longer focal lengths of the EdgeHD-11, globular clusters are fairly bright and don't require a lot of exposure to get reasonably good results.

M14 (NGC 6402) May 10, 2018
EdgeHD-11 f/7  ASI1600mm RGB 45 minutes integration

Here is M14, a globular cluster in the constellation of Ophiuchus. At a distance of about 30,000 light-years, M14 contains several hundred thousand stars. At an apparent magnitude of +7.6 it can be easily observed with binoculars. Medium-sized telescopes will show some hint of the individual stars of which the brightest is of magnitude +14.

The total luminosity of M14 is in the order of 400,000 times that of the Sun corresponding to an absolute magnitude of -9.12. The shape of the cluster is decidedly elongated. M14 is about 100 light-years across.  (Wikipedia)

This image of M14 is a combination of 15 subs each of R, G and B, with an individual exposure of 60 seconds for each filter.

Galaxies in Ursa Major and Thor's Helmet in Canis Major

Been spending a lot of time learning the complexities of narrow band (NB) imaging, and after a lot of research and experimentation on PixInsight (the software used to post process the images) I finally arrived at an acceptable final image of the M81-M82 galaxy group in Ursa Major.

Messier 81, the galaxy on the right (also known as NGC 3031 or Bode's Galaxy), is a spiral galaxy about 12 million light-years away, in the constellation Ursa Major. Due to its proximity to Earth, large size, and active galactic nucleus (which harbors a supermassive black hole 70 million times the mass of our sun), Messier 81 has been studied extensively by professional astronomers. The galaxy's large size and relatively high brightness also make it a popular target for amateur astronomers. (Wikipedia)

Messier 82 (also known as NGC 3034, Cigar Galaxy or M82) is a starburst galaxy about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. A member of the M81 Group, it is about five times more luminous than the whole Milky Way and has a center one hundred times more luminous than our galaxy's center. The starburst activity is thought to have been triggered by interaction with neighboring galaxy M81.(Wikipedia)

M81-82 Galaxy Group - March 16 and April 30, 2018
GT102 APO Refractor - ASI1600mm Camera
3.2 hours RGBHa

I had already pretty much determined the process of using my new astro camera with the standard Red, Green, Blue filters, but adding in the narrowband Ha subs has been a challenge. M81 was especially problematic in that the core of the galaxy is so bright. I still need some time to properly set the camera's settings, exposure times and final post processing to improve on the results. In addition, the mount I am using is still exhibiting some oscillations in RA and this is contributing to some softening of the image.

Thor's Helmet was a better success. NGC 2359 (also known as Thor's Helmet) is an emission nebula in the constellation Canis Major. The nebula is approximately 3,670 parsecs (11.96 thousand light years) away and 30 light-years in size. The central star is the Wolf-Rayet star WR7, an extremely hot star thought to be in a brief pre-supernova stage of evolution. It is similar in nature to the Bubble Nebula, but interactions with a nearby large molecular cloud are thought to have contributed to the more complex shape and curved bow-shock structure of Thor's Helmet.

Thor's Helmet - March 16, 17 and 18, 2018
GT102 APO Refractor - ASI1600mm Camera
6.3 hours RGBHaOIII

This object emits mainly in the Ha and OIII spectrum. Capturing this nebula using my previous OSC camera would never have given me the result shown here. This object truly needs NB imaging to get the most it has to offer.