M33, the Triangulum Galaxy — at 2.7 million light-years the third-largest member of our Local Group, and faintly visible to the naked eye from a truly dark site. The Hα layer in this HaLRGB blend makes its star-forming regions pop as red knots along the arms, including NGC 604, one of the largest known stellar nurseries anywhere. Four hours of short 15-second LRGB subs keep the core clean, with 80 minutes of 3nm Hα layered on top.
All renders are in the gallery folder, and the image is on AstroBin.
Acquisition details
- Total integration: 5h 20m — L 1h (240 × 15″), R 1h (240 × 15″), G 1h (240 × 15″), B 1h (240 × 15″), Hα 1h 20m (16 × 300″)
Equipment
- Telescope: Askar 107PHQ
- Camera: ZWO ASI2600MM DUO
- Mount: Sky-Watcher Wave 150i strain-wave mount
- Filters: Baader LRGB + UV/IR-cut (CMOS-optimized), 2 in; Antlia 3nm Hα, 2 in
- Accessories: Askar M54 OAG, MeLE Quieter4 mini PC, Pegasus Astro FocusCube 3
- Software: N.I.N.A., PHD2, Green Swamp Server, PixInsight, Adobe Lightroom Classic