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Designations:
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M63, NGC 5055
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Object Type:
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Spiral Galaxy
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Constellation:
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Canes Venatici
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13 hr 15.8 min
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+42° 2 min
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8.6
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Size:
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12.6 X 7.2 arcminutes
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Distance:
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23.5 million light years
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Discoverer:
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Pierre Mechain, 1779
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In photographs, M63 looks like a spiral
galaxy
that has lost control of its gravity,
and we are catching a rare sight of its arms being tossed into space. This spiral, which shines with the light of
10 billion suns, is a prime example of a type of
galaxy
that displays a lack of cohesion between its inner and
outer arms. The inner region of M63's 86,000-light-year-wide disk is ringed by strong spiral structure, while
the plentiful outer arms appear loose, patchy and haphazard. Not surprisingly, M63 is nicknamed the Sunflower
Galaxy
because of its resemblance to that towering plant whose dense, seedy head is ringed by an abundance of
bright, overlapping petals.
If you look closely you can see several other small galaxies in this image. Most notable is PGC 46093 which is shown just to the right of M63 and PGC 45992 at the top right corner. Other small galaxies may be found beneath M63 in this image |
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Telescope:
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Focal Length:
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1200 mm
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Mount:
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Camera
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Guider:
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Exposures:
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9 10-minute exposures for luminance, 3 10-minute exposures for red, green, and blue (90 minutes total for color)
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Location:
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Cicero,IN
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Software:
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CCDSoft for image acquisition, processed with CCDStack and Photoshop CS2
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