Messier 33

Spiral Galaxy, Type Sc. Triangulum

October 2012. Cave Creek Canyon Observatory, Arizona Sky Village

The Triangulum Galaxy is a spiral galaxy 2.73 million light-years (ly) from Earth in the constellation Triangulum. It is catalogued as Messier 33 or NGC 598. The Triangulum Galaxy is the third-largest member of the Local Group of galaxies, behind the Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy (the largest). It is one of the most distant permanent objects that can be viewed with the naked eye. The galaxy is the smallest spiral galaxy in the Local Group and is believed to be a satellite of the Andromeda Galaxy or on its rebound into the latter due to their interactions, velocities, and proximity to one another in the night sky. It also has an H II nucleus.

Telescope: ASA N16 f3.6
Mount: Astro Physics 3600GTO “El Capitan”
Camera: SBIG STL-11000M
Guider: SBIG STL-Internal

L: 62×10 mins = 620 mins, R: 12×10 mins = 120 mins, G: 12×10 mins = 120 mins, B: 12×10 mins = 120 mins

Total Imaging Time: 16h 20m

Data Imaged remotely over 10 nights during September & October 2012.
Data acquisition & Processing by David Churchill.