The Grus Quartet CCA250

Northeast of Theta Gruis are four large interacting spiral galaxies known as the Grus Quartet, located between 55 and 70 million light years away. In the upper left corner of this image is NGC 7552, a beautiful face-on barred spiral. NGC 7590 sits above the center of the frame with the pair NGC 7599 and NGC 7582 completing the quartet just below to the right. NGC 7552 and 7582 are exhibiting high starburst activity; this is thought to be caused by tidal forces from the interaction between them and subsequent formation of a bar in the disks. A closer view of this image reveals many fuzzy yellowish objects, in particular populating the bottom half of this vista. These are galaxies hundreds of millions of light years away and are part of two galaxy clusters, Abell 1111 located just below the center of the frame and Abell 3998 in the lower right, near the bluish irregular galaxy PGC71145. Dozens of other background galaxies grace the entire field of view. Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - Exposure L (600m) R (100m) G (90m) B (90m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

Dusty island universe NGC918

NGC 918 is a beautiful barred spiral galaxy about 50,000 light-years across and lies some 60 million light-years away toward the constellation Aries. It is heavily obscured by the Integrated Flux Nebulae (IFN), the wisps and tendrils that permeate this cosmic canvas, which are part of our galaxy and made of dust, small grains of minerals and long-chain carbon-based molecules, produced in abundance when stars die. Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - Exposure L (410m) R (60m) G (70m) B (80m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

Fornax Galaxy Cluster CCA250

At a distance of approximately 62 million of light years, the Fornax Cluster is the second richest cluster of galaxies within 100 million light-years, although it is much smaller than the Virgo Cluster. It lies primarily in the constellation Fornax, and may be associated with the nearby Eridanus Group. Although small as clusters of galaxies go, the Fornax Cluster is a valuable source of information about the evolution of such clusters, showing the effects of a merger of a subgroup with the main group, which in turn lends clues about the associated galactic superstructure. At the centre of the cluster lies NGC 1399. Other noteworthy cluster members include NGC 1350, 1427A and NGC 1404. NGC 1365 (bottom right in the image) is the most famous galaxy in the Fornax cluster. It is a barred spiral galaxy with a beautiful shape. (text adapted from Wikipedia). Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - 2 Panel mosaic - cumulative exposure Ha (360m) L (1280m) R (200m) G (200m) B (200m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

Centaurus A (NGC5128)

Only 11 million light-years away, Centaurus A is the closest active galaxy to planet Earth. Spanning over 60,000 light-years, the peculiar elliptical galaxy, also known as NGC 5128, is featured in this sharp color image. Centaurus A is apparently the result of a collision of two otherwise normal galaxies resulting in a fantastic jumble of star clusters and imposing dark dust lanes. Near the galaxy's center, left over cosmic debris is steadily being consumed by a central black hole with a billion times the mass of the Sun. As in other active galaxies, that process likely generates the radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray energy radiated by Centaurus A (text adapted from APOD). Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - Ha (120m) L (590m) R (40m) G (40m) B (40m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

NGC 253: Silver Coin Galaxy

Shiny NGC 253 is one of the brightest spiral galaxies visible, and also one of the dustiest. Some call it the Silver Dollar Galaxy for its appearance in small telescopes, or just the Sculptor Galaxy for its location within the boundaries of the southern constellation Sculptor. Discovered in 1783 by mathematician and astronomer Caroline Herschel, the dusty island universe lies a mere 10 million light-years away. About 70 thousand light-years across, NGC 253 is the largest member of the Sculptor Group of Galaxies, the nearest to our own Local Group of Galaxies. In addition to its spiral dust lanes, tendrils of dust seem to be rising from a galactic disk laced with young star clusters and star forming regions in this sharp color image. The high dust content accompanies frantic star formation, earning NGC 253 the designation of a starburst galaxy. NGC 253 is also known to be a strong source of high-energy x-rays and gamma rays, likely due to massive black holes near the galaxy's center (Text adapted from APOD). Quite well visible in this deep image is the very faint extended halo surrounding the main galaxy, a seldom imagined feature. Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - Ha (260m) L (630m) R (90m) G (90m) B (90m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

Spiral Galaxy NGC 6744

The beautiful spiral galaxy NGC 6744 is almost twice the diameter of our Milky Way. Located 30 million light years away in the southern constellation of Pavo (The Peacock), it appears slightly tilted from our line of sight in this image that covers an area of the sky about one angular degree wide. In it, the giant galaxy's elongated yellowish core is dominated by the light from old, cool stars. Beyond the core, grand spiral arms are filled with young blue star clusters and speckled with pinkish star forming regions. An extended arm sweeps past a smaller satellite galaxy (NGC 6744A) at the lower right. NGC 6744's galactic companion is reminiscent of the Milky Way's satellite galaxy the Large Magellanic Cloud (text adapted from APOD). Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - Ha (350m) L (370m) R (90m) G (100m) B (80m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

Cetus Duo M77 and NGC 1055

Large spiral galaxy M77 at top right joins spiral NGC1055 at bottom in this cosmic view toward the aquatic constellation Cetus. The narrowed, dusty appearance of edge-on spiral NGC 1055 contrasts nicely with the face-on view of M77's bright nucleus and spiral arms. Both over 100,000 light-years across, the pair are dominant members of a small galaxy group about 60 million light-years away. At that estimated distance, M77 is one of the most remote objects in Charles Messier's catalog, and is separated from fellow island universe NGC 1055 by at least 500,000 light-years. The field of view is about the size of the full Moon on the sky and includes colorful foreground Milky Way stars along with more distant background galaxies (text adapted from APOD). Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - L (520m) R (70m) G (80m) B (110m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

The Hydra Cluster of Galaxies

Two stars within our own Milky Way galaxy anchor the foreground of this cosmic snapshot. Beyond them lie the galaxies of the Hydra Cluster. In fact, while the spiky foreground stars are hundreds of light-years distant, the Hydra Cluster galaxies are over 100 million light-years away. Three large galaxies near the cluster center, two yellow ellipticals (NGC 3311, NGC 3309) and one prominent blue spiral (NGC 3312), are the dominant galaxies, each about 150,000 light-years in diameter. An intriguing overlapping galaxy pair cataloged as NGC 3314 is just above and left of NGC 3312. Also known as Abell 1060, the Hydra galaxy cluster is one of three large galaxy clusters within 200 million light-years of the Milky Way. In the nearby universe, galaxies are gravitationally bound into clusters which themselves are loosely bound into superclusters that in turn are seen to align over even larger scales. At a distance of 100 million light-years this picture would be about 1.3 million light-years across (text adapted from APOD). Takahashi CCA250 (250/f5) - ZWO 6200MM - L (300m) R (60m) G (60m) B (60m) - AMT Observatory (A.Lau/M.Lorenzi/T.Tse), Río Hurtado, Chile. Image processing M.Lorenzi.

Spiral Galaxy NGC 300

NGC 300 is so interesting because it is so normal. An Sc-type spiral galaxy in the nearby Sculptor group of galaxies, NGC 300 shows typical flowing blue spiral arms, an expected compact nucleus, and the requisite amount of stars, star clusters, and nebulae. Therefore, studying NGC 300 should indicate how, exactly, a normal spiral galaxy works. NGC 300 lies only 7 million light years away, spans nearly the same amount of sky as the full moon, and is visible with a small telescope toward the constellation of Sculptor (text adapted from APOD). Officina Stellare Rifast 500 (500/f3.8) - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (270m) L (460m) R (60m) G (60m) B (60m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Sculptor and Fornax dwarfs in perspective

The Sculptor and The Fornax Dwarf are satellites of the Milky Way that were both discovered by Harlow Shapley in 1937 and 1938 respectively. These galaxies are dwarf Spheroidal (dSph) and generally accepted as among the 'darkest' galaxies known, with mass-to-light ratios exceeding 100 or more in some cases. The Sculptor Dwarf contains only 4 percent of the carbon and other heavy elements in our own galaxy, the Milky Way, making it similar to primitive galaxies seen at the edge of the universe. The Sculptor only made stars for the first 2-3 billion years of its life and its most metal-rich stars reach only to 1/10th of the solar metallicity, whereas Fornax made stars for the best of 10 billion years, reaching up to 1/3 of the solar metallicity. These galaxies have extremely low surface brightness yet cover a large area of sky. In this comparison image I added a picture of the full Moon reduced to the same scale to display how large the apparent sizes of these galaxies are.

The Fornax dwarf

The Fornax Dwarf Spheroidal is an elliptical dwarf galaxy in the constellation Fornax that was discovered in 1938 by Harlow Shapley. He discovered it while he was in South Africa on photographic plates taken by the 24 inch Bruce refractor at Boyden Observatory, shortly after he discovered the Sculptor Dwarf galaxy. The galaxy is a satellite of the Milky Way and contains six globular clusters; the largest, NGC 1049, was discovered before the galaxy itself. The galaxy is also receding from the Milky Way at 53 km/s. It mostly contains population II stars (text from Wikipedia). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (260m) R (120m) G (110m) B (120m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The Grus Quartet

Northeast of Theta Gruis are four interacting galaxies known as the Grus Quartet. These galaxies are NGC 7552 ( at the top left, a lovely face-on barred spiral), NGC 7590 (in the middle), NGC 7599 and NGC 7582 (the pair at center right). The latter three galaxies occupy an area of sky only 10 arcminutes across and are sometimes referred to as the "Grus Triplet," although all four are part of a larger loose group of galaxies called the IC 1459 Grus Group. NGC 7552 and 7582 are exhibiting high starburst activity; this is thought to have arisen because of the tidal forces from interacting (text adapted from Wikipedia). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (350m) R (120m) G (120m) B (120m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The Leo Triplet Galaxies and the Tidal Tail of NGC 3628

This popular group is famous as the Leo Triplet - a gathering of three magnificent galaxies in one field of view. Crowd pleasers when imaged with even modest telescopes, these galaxies can be introduced individually as NGC 3628 (top), M66 (bottom left), and M65 (bottom right). All three are large spiral galaxies. They tend to look dissimilar because their galactic disks are tilted at different angles to our line of sight. NGC 3628, nicknamed the hamburger galaxy, is seen edge-on, with obscuring dust lanes cutting across the plane of the galaxy, while the disks of M66 and M65 are both inclined enough to show off their spiral structure. Gravitational interactions between galaxies in the group have also left telltale signs, including the warped and inflated disk of NGC 3628 and the drawn out spiral arms of M66. But, perhaps most intriguing is the spectacular tail stretching left for about 300,000 light-years from NGC 3628's warped, edge-on disk. Known as a tidal tail, the structure has been drawn out of the galaxy by gravitational tides during brief but violent past interactions with its large neighbors. Not often imaged so distinctly, the tidal tail is composed of young bluish star clusters and star-forming regions (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (280m) R (80m) G (40m) B (80m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The Dorado Group (NGC1549/1533/1566)

The Dorado Group is a loose concentration of galaxies containing both spirals and ellipticals. It is generally considered a 'galaxy group' but may approach the size of a 'galaxy cluster'. It lies primarily in the southern constellation Dorado and is one of the richest galaxy groups of the Southern Hemisphere. A rough distance estimate puts the cluster about 50 million light years away. The dominant member of Dorado Group and also its brightest member is NGC 1566 (top left in the image). This is an intermediate spiral galaxy, meaning that while it does not have a well defined bar-shaped region of stars at its centre — like barred spirals — it is not quite an unbarred spiral either. NGC 1566 is the second brightest Seyfert galaxy in the sky. Seyfert galaxies have a very luminous nucleus with many of the characteristics of a quasar, though much less energetic. At the center of the Dorado group lie interacting galaxies NGC 1553 and NGC 1549 (center right on the image), respectively the second and third brightest member of the cluster. Their interaction appears to be in the early stage and can be seen in optical wavelengths by faint but distinct irregular shells of emission and a curious jet on the northwest side. Another prominent galaxy at bottom right of the image is NGC 1546, an 11th-magnitude lenticular galaxy.Many thanks to Sakib Rasool for suggesting this interesting target mostly overlooked due its proximity to the LMC. Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (340m) R (120m) G (120m) B (120m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Galaxy Cluster Abell 1736 - Labeled

Labeled version reporting main IC & PGC galaxies Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (280m) R (120m) G (130m) B (160m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Galaxy Cluster Abell 1736

The Abell catalog of rich clusters of galaxies is an all-sky catalog of more than 4,073 galaxy clusters of nominal redshift z <= 0.2. This catalog was compiled by George Abell’s original “Northern Survey” of 1958, which had only 2,712 clusters, with a further 1,361 clusters – the “Southern Survey” of 1989 – from those parts of the south celestial hemisphere that had been omitted from the earlier survey. Abell1736 is a rarely imaged rich galaxy cluster in the constellation of Hydra that comprise hundreds of galaxies sparse on less than two degrees of sky. Unfortunately none of these galaxies is particularly large to show many details with amateur telescopes. Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (280m) R (120m) G (130m) B (160m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

IC1459 Group of galaxies with labels

IC1459 Group of galaxies (original here http://www.glitteringlights.com/Images/Galaxies/i-bbk2zsZ/A) annotated with labels. Despite reporting all PGC cataloged objects (a database with >73 thousands galaxies) still there are LOTS of background galaxies not cataloged. An amazingly rich FOV :)

IC1459 Group of galaxies

IC 1459 is a rarely imaged elliptical S0 galaxy (i.e. large bulge with a minimal or faint disk) about 70 million light years from Earth located in the constellation of the Grus, close the border with Piscis Austrinus and Sculptor. It is an object of 11 mag easily visible in amateur telescopes and is the leading member of a small group of galaxies formed mostly by spiral galaxies. IC 1459 shows a prominent halo on deep exposures. In its vicinity are the barred spiral galaxies NGC 7410 (type SBa), NGC 7418A (SBc, a low-surface-brightness galaxy which is the product of an interaction or a merger between galaxies), NGC 7418 (a bright relatively symmetric spiral),and IC 2559 (SBc). Other conspicuous galaxies imaged in the field above are IC 5270, IC 5269, IC 5264, NGC 7421 (a noticeably asymmetric spiral galaxy) and IC5273. Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (360m) R (120m) G (120m) B (120m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The Sculptor Dwarf

The Sculptor Dwarf Galaxy is a dwarf spheroidal galaxy that is a satellite of the Milky Way. The galaxy lies within the constellation Sculptor. It was discovered in 1937 by Harlow Shapley using the 24-inch Bruce refractor at Boyden Observatory. The galaxy is located about 290,000 light-years away from the solar system. The Sculptor Dwarf contains only 4 percent of the carbon and other heavy elements in our own galaxy, the Milky Way, making it similar to primitive galaxies seen at the edge of the universe (from Wikipedia) Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (180m) R (90m) G (90m) B (90m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

NGC4945

Large spiral galaxy NGC 4945 is seen edge-on near the center of this cosmic galaxy portrait. In fact, NGC 4945 is almost the size of our own Milky Way Galaxy. Its own dusty disk, young blue star clusters, and pink star forming regions standout in the sharp, colorful telescopic image. About 13 million light-years distant toward the expansive southern constellation Centaurus, NGC 4945 is only about six times farther away than Andromeda, the nearest large spiral galaxy to the Milky Way. Though the galaxy's central region is largely hidden from view for optical telescopes, X-ray and infrared observations indicate significant high energy emission and star formation in the core of NGC 4945. Its obscured but active nucleus qualifies the gorgeous island universe as a Seyfert galaxy and likely home to a central supermassive black hole. The other prominent galaxy in the field, NGC 4976, is an elliptical galaxy. Left of center, NGC 4976 is much farther away, at a distance of about 35 million light-years, and not physically associated with NGC 4945 (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (200m) R (100m) G (100m) B (100m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

NGC 1365: Majestic Spiral with Supernova

Barred spiral galaxy NGC 1365 is truly a majestic island universe some 200,000 light-years across. Located a mere 60 million light-years away toward the chemical constellation Fornax, NGC 1365 is a dominant member of the well-studied Fornax galaxy cluster. This enlargement of the Fornax cluster image shows the galaxy before and few days after the explosion of the bright Ia supernova SN2012fr, discovered on October 27. The supernova is the bright blue star close to the galaxy core (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (720m) R (340m) G (250m) B (270m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Unusual Giant Galaxy NGC 1316

Astronomers turn detectives when trying to figure out the cause of startling sights like NGC 1316. Their investigation indicates that NGC 1316 is an enormous elliptical galaxy that started, about 100 million years ago, to devour a smaller spiral galaxy neighbor, NGC 1317, just above it. Supporting evidence includes the dark dust lanes characteristic of a spiral galaxy, and faint swirls of stars and gas visible in this wide and deep image. What remains unexplained are the unusually small globular star clusters, seen as faint dots on the image. Most elliptical galaxies have more and brighter globular clusters than NGC 1316. Yet the observed globulars are too old to have been created by the recent spiral collision. One hypothesis is that these globulars survive from an even earlier galaxy that was subsumed into NGC 1316 (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (440m) R (200m) G (200m) B (200m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Irregular Galaxy NGC 55

Irregular galaxy NGC 55 is thought to be similar to the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). But while the LMC is about 180,000 light-years away and is a well known satellite of our own Milky Way Galaxy, NGC 55 is more like 6 million light-years distant and is a member of the Sculptor Galaxy Group. Classified as an irregular galaxy, in deep exposures the LMC itself resembles a barred disk galaxy. However, spanning about 50,000 light-years, NGC 55 is seen nearly edge-on, presenting a flattened, narrow profile in contrast with our face-on view of the LMC. Just as large star forming regions create emission nebulae in the LMC, NGC 55 is also seen to be producing new stars. This galaxy portrait highlights a bright core crossed with dust clouds, telltale pinkish star forming regions, and young blue star clusters in NGC 55 (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (350m) R (120m) G (110m) B (120m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Fornax Galaxy Cluster TEC140

At a distance of approximately 62 million of light years, the Fornax Cluster is the second richest cluster of galaxies within 100 million light-years, although it is much smaller than the Virgo Cluster. It lies primarily in the constellation Fornax, and may be associated with the nearby Eridanus Group. Although small as clusters of galaxies go, the Fornax Cluster is a valuable source of information about the evolution of such clusters, showing the effects of a merger of a subgroup with the main group, which in turn lends clues about the associated galactic superstructure. At the centre of the cluster lies NGC 1399. Other noteworthy cluster members include NGC 1350, 1427A and NGC 1404. NGC 1365 (bottom right in the image) is the most famous galaxy in the Fornax cluster. It is a barred spiral galaxy with a beautiful shape. (text adapted from Wikipedia). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (720m) R (340m) G (250m) B (270m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Barnard's Galaxy in the mist

Nearby galaxy NGC 6822 is irregular in several ways. First, the galaxy's star distribution merits a formal classification of dwarf irregular, and from our vantage-point the small galaxy appears nearly rectangular. What strikes astronomers as more peculiar, however, is NGC 6822's unusually high abundance of HII regions, locales of ionized hydrogen that surround young stars. Large HII regions, also known as emission nebulas, are visible surrounding the small galaxy, particularly toward the upper right. Toward the lower left are bright stars that are loosely grouped into an arm. Pictured above, NGC 6822, also known as Barnard's Galaxy, is located only about 1.5 million light years away and so is a member of our Local Group of Galaxies. The galaxy, home to famous nebulas including Hubble V, is visible with a small telescope toward the constellation of Sagittarius (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (410m) L (620m) R (160m) G (120m) B (170m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The needle's eye Galaxy (NGC 247)

NGC 247 (aka Caldwell 62) is a dwarf spiral galaxy in Cetus, and it is a member of the Sculptor Group, the nearest group of galaxies to our Local Group which includes the Milky Way. NGC 247 has a slightly irregular shape on one end where the spiral arm has a hollowed out appearance on long-exposure photographs, resembling the shape of a neddle's eye. It is about the same size as NGC 253, but two magnitudes fainter. Recent measurements placed this galaxy about 11 million light-years away, about 1 million light-years closer than the estimated distance of NGC 253. In the above wide field image is also revealed the rich background of this area which features a multitude of other galaxies, located a lot farther from our planet than NGC 247. Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (300m) L (390m) R (270m) G (220m) B (240m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The Topsy-Turvy Galaxy NGC 1313

Why is this galaxy so discombobulated? Usually, galaxies this topsy-turvy result from a recent collision with a neighboring galaxy. Spiral galaxy NGC 1313, however, appears to be alone. Brightly lit with new and blue massive stars, star formation appears so rampant in NGC 1313 that it has been labeled a starburst galaxy. Strange features of NGC 1313 include that its spiral arms are lopsided and its rotational axis is not at the center of the nuclear bar. Pictured above, NGC 1313 spans about 50,000 light years and lies only about 15 million light years away toward the constellation of the Reticle (Reticulum). Continued numerical modeling of galaxies like NGC 1313 might shed some light on its unusual nature (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (550m) L (490m) R (130m) G (130m) B (130m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

NGC 6744

NGC 6744 (also known as Caldwell 101) is an impressive spiral galaxy that lies about 30 million light-years away in the southern constellation of Pavo (the Peacock). But this view could almost be a picture postcard of our own Milky Way, taken and sent by an extragalactic friend, as this galaxy closely resembles our own. We see NGC 6744 almost face-on, meaning we get a dramatic bird’s eye view of the galaxy’s structure. If we had the technology to escape the Milky Way and could look down on it from intergalactic space, this view is close to the one we would see — striking spiral arms wrapping around a dense, elongated nucleus and a dusty disk. There is even a distorted companion galaxy — NGC 6744A, seen here as a smudge to the upper left of NGC 6744, which is reminiscent of one of the Milky Way’s neighboring Magellanic Clouds. One difference between NGC 6744 and the Milky Way is their size. While our galaxy is roughly 100,000 light-years across, the galaxy pictured here extends to almost twice this diameter. Nevertheless, NGC 6744 gives us a tantalizing sense of how a distant observer might see our own galactic home. This dramatic object is one of the largest and nearest spiral galaxies. Although it has a brightness of about 60 billion Suns, its light spreads across a large area in the sky — about two-thirds the width of the Full Moon, making the galaxy appear as a hazy glow with a bright center through a small telescope. Still, it is one of the most beautiful objects in the southern sky, and it can be identified by amateur astronomers as an oval shape contrasting with a rich background of stars (text adapted from astronomy.com). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (330m) L (580m) R (180m) G (150m) B (190m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

M49 and the "Lost Galaxies"

Many galaxies are visible in the field of view of this cosmic vista and three are particular noteworthy. M49, at right in the image above, was the first member of the Virgo Cluster of galaxies to be discovered by Charles Messier in 1771. With a magnitude of 8.3 and located about 50 million light-years away in the constellation of Virgo, M49 is supposed to have a supermassive black hole in its nucleus with an estimated mass 565 million times the mass of the Sun. This galaxy has a large collection of globular clusters, estimated at about 5,900. Barely visible around M49 is a faint extended, interleaved shell system reminiscent of the radial accretion of a satellite companion, discovered only in 2010. NGC4526, at left in the image above, is a lenticular galaxy with a magnitude of 9.6, located in between two relatively bright stars that makes it an easy target to be spotted visually. NGC 4535 is the bright spiral galaxy above NGC 4526. It was discovered in 1785 by William Herschel that described it as an easy object and at 9.8 has a similar magnitude of the latter. Due to the relative brightness and close location to M49, it is surprising how Messier missed these two galaxies, hence the nicknames of "lost galaxies". Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (540m) R (130m) G (130m) B (120m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Andromeda Galaxy - M31

The most distant object easily visible to the unaided eye is M31, the great Andromeda Galaxy some two and a half million light-years away. But without a telescope, even this immense spiral galaxy - spanning over 200,000 light years - appears as a faint, nebulous cloud in the constellation Andromeda. In contrast, a bright yellow nucleus, dark winding dust lanes, gorgeous blue spiral arms and star clusters are recorded in this telescopic digital image. While even casual skygazers are now inspired by the knowledge that there are many distant galaxies like M31, astronomers seriously debated this fundamental concept less than 90 years ago. Were these "spiral nebulae" simply outlying components of our own Milky Way Galaxy or were they instead "island universes" -- distant systems of stars comparable to the Milky Way itself? This question was central to the famous Shapley-Curtis debate of 1920, which was later resolved by observations of M31 in favor of Andromeda, island universe (text adapted from APOD). TEC 140APO & AP Mach1 - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (180m) L (150m) R (45m) G (45m) B (45m) - Gambugliano, Vicenza, Italy

Centaurus A (NGC5128) Wide Field

Only 11 million light-years away, Centaurus A is the closest active galaxy to planet Earth. Spanning over 60,000 light-years, the peculiar elliptical galaxy, also known as NGC 5128, is featured in this sharp color image. Centaurus A is apparently the result of a collision of two otherwise normal galaxies resulting in a fantastic jumble of star clusters and imposing dark dust lanes. Near the galaxy's center, left over cosmic debris is steadily being consumed by a central black hole with a billion times the mass of the Sun. As in other active galaxies, that process likely generates the radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray energy radiated by Centaurus A (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - L (560m) R (60m) G (80m) B (80m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Tidal Streams on M83

Big, bright, and beautiful, spiral galaxy M83 lies a mere twelve million light-years away, near the southeastern tip of the very long constellation Hydra. Prominent spiral arms traced by dark dust lanes and blue star clusters lend this galaxy its popular name of the Southern Pinwheel. But reddish star forming regions that dot the sweeping arms highlighted in this sparkling color composite also suggest another nickname, The Thousand-Ruby Galaxy. About 40,000 light-years across, M83 is a member of a group of galaxies that includes active galaxy Centaurus A. The core of M83 itself is bright at x-ray energies, showing a high concentration of neutron stars and black holes left from an intense burst of star formation. Above the galaxy is visible a very faint curved tidal stream first seen by David Malin in an image produced at the Anglo-Australian Observatory (his original work visible here). Recent researches suggest that this structure is most probably part of a very far and faint spiral arm belonging to M83. This deep image also features spiky foreground Milky Way stars and many distant background galaxies (text adapted from APOD). Apo TEC140 (140/f7.2) - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (210m) L (360m) R (160m) G (160m) B (170m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The Large Magellanic Cloud

Portuguese navigator Fernando de Magellan and his crew had plenty of time to study the southern sky during the first circumnavigation of planet Earth. As a result, two fuzzy cloud-like objects easily visible for southern hemisphere skygazers are known as the Clouds of Magellan. Of course, these star clouds are now understood to be dwarf irregular galaxies, satellites of our larger spiral Milky Way galaxy. An alluring sight in dark southern skies, the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) pictured above is only about 180,000 light-years distant in the constellation Dorado. Spanning about 15,000 light-years or so, it is the most massive of the Milky Way's satellite galaxies and is the site of the closest supernova in modern times. The prominent red knot on the left is 30 Doradus, or the Tarantula Nebula, a giant star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, particularly well visible here because of the use in the final images stack of a narrow band filter that transmits only the red light of hydrogen atoms. (Text adapted from APOD). More than 73 hours of total exposures went into this 4 panels mosaic covering about 140 square degrees of sky. Pentax 67 EDIF 300mm f/4 - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (1200m) OIII (820m) L (960m) R (470m) G (480m) B (490m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC)

Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan and his crew had plenty of time to study the southern sky during the first circumnavigation of planet Earth. As a result, two celestial wonders easily visible for southern hemisphere skygazers are known as the Clouds of Magellan. These cosmic clouds are now understood to be dwarf irregular galaxies, satellites of our larger spiral Milky Way Galaxy. The Small Magellanic Cloud actually spans 15,000 light-years or so and contains several hundred million stars. About 210,000 light-years away in the constellation Tucana, it is more distant than other known Milky Way satellite galaxies, including the Canis Major and Sagittarius Dwarf galaxies and the Large Magellanic Cloud. This sharp image also includes two foreground globular star clusters NGC 362 (bottom right) and 47 Tucanae. Spectacular 47 Tucanae is a mere 13,000 light-years away and seen here to the left of the Small Magellanic Cloud (text adapted from APOD). Pentax 67 EDIF 300mm f/4 - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (160m) OIII (240m) L (100m) R (40m) G (40m) B (40m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Centaurus A and Omega Centauri

At the top of this skyscape, Centaurus A (NGC 5128) seems to be a fantastic jumble of old yellow stars, young blue star clusters, and imposing dark dust lanes. Spanning over 60,000 light-years, the peculiar elliptical galaxy is apparently the result of a collision of two otherwise normal galaxies. The left over cosmic debris is steadily being consumed by a black hole with a billion times the mass of the Sun which lies at the center of Centaurus A. It's likely that such black hole central engines generate the radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray energy radiated by Centaurus A and other active galaxies. For an active galaxy Centaurus A is close, a mere 10 million light-years away, and is well-studied by earthbound astronomers. At the bottom of this image, globular star cluster Omega Centauri (NGC 5139) is some 15,000 light-years away and 150 light-years in diameter. Packed with about 10 million stars much older than the Sun, Omega Cen is the largest of 200 or so known globular clusters that roam the halo of our Milky Way galaxy. Though most star clusters consist of stars with the same age and composition, the enigmatic Omega Cen exhibits the presence of different stellar populations with a spread of ages and chemical abundances. In fact, Omega Cen may be the remnant core of a small galaxy merging with the Milky Way (text adapted from APOD). Pentax 67 EDIF 300mm f/4 - FLI Proline 16803 - L (160m) R (40m) G (40m) B (40m) - Warrumbungle Observatory, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia

Shell Galaxies (NGC474 and NGC467)

What's happening to galaxies NGC 474 and NGC 467? The multiple layers of emission appear strangely complex and unexpected given the relatively featureless appearance of the elliptical galaxy in less deep images. The cause of the shells is currently unknown, but possibly tidal tails related to debris left over from absorbing numerous small galaxies in the past billion years. Alternatively the shells may be like ripples in a pond, where the ongoing collision with NGC 470, the spiral galaxy to the right of NGC 474, is causing density waves to ripple though the galactic giant. Regardless of the actual cause, the above image dramatically highlights the increasing consensus that the outer halos of most large galaxies are not really smooth but have complexities induced by frequent interactions with -- and accretions of -- smaller nearby galaxies. The halo of our own Milky Way Galaxy is one example of such unexpected complexity. NGC 474 spans about 250,000 light years and lies about 100 million light years distant toward the constellation of the Fish Pisces. (Text adapted from APOD). RCOS 14.5" f/9 - APOGEE U16 - L (240m) R (40m) G (40m) B (40m) - Lightbuckets LB003, NM, USA

Triangulum Galaxy (M33)

The small, northern constellation Triangulum harbors this magnificent face-on spiral galaxy, M33. Its popular names include the Pinwheel Galaxy or just the Triangulum Galaxy. M33 is over 50,000 light-years in diameter, third largest in the Local Group of galaxies after the Andromeda Galaxy (M31), and our own Milky Way. About 3 million light-years from the Milky Way, M33 is itself thought to be a satellite of the Andromeda Galaxy and astronomers in these two galaxies would likely have spectacular views of each other's grand spiral star systems. As for the view from planet Earth, this image nicely shows off M33's blue star clusters and pinkish star forming regions that trace the galaxy's loosely wound spiral arms. In fact, the cavernous NGC 604 is the brightest star forming region, seen here at about the 7 o'clock position from the galaxy center. Like M31, M33's population of well-measured variable stars have helped make this nearby spiral a cosmic yardstick for establishing the distance scale of the Universe (text adapted from APOD). TEC 140APO & AP Mach1 - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (260m) OIII (60m) L (130m) R (25m) G (25m) B (25m) - Gambugliano, Vicenza, Italy

Integrated Flux Nebula around M81 and M82

Large galaxies and faint nebulae highlight this deep image of the M81 Group of galaxies. First and foremost in the wide-angle exposure is the grand design spiral galaxy M81, the largest galaxy visible in the image. M81 is gravitationally interacting with M82 just above it, a big galaxy with an unusual halo of filamentary red-glowing gas. Around the image many other galaxies from the M81 Group of galaxies can be seen. Together with other galaxy congregates including our Local Group of galaxies and the Virgo Cluster of galaxies, the M81 Group is part of the expansive Virgo Supercluster of Galaxies. This whole galaxy menagerie is seen through the faint glow of an Integrated Flux Nebula, a little studied complex of diffuse gas and dust clouds in our Milky Way Galaxy (Text adapted from APOD). Pentax 67 EDIF 300mm f/4 - FLI Proline 16803 - L (120m) R (20m) G (20m) B (20m) - Gambugliano, Vicenza, Italy