| Spiral Galaxy NGC 2403 in Camelopardalis, Caldwell 7 |
Spiral Galaxy NGC 2403 is one of the largest and brightest galaxies that was overlooked by Charles Messier in his famous catalog. At a distance of 12
million light years in the faint constellation Camelopardalis (the giraffe), it lies in the same galaxy group as the better known M81 and M82 galaxies. The red
areas are bright emission nebulae of glowing hydrogen, and the hazy blue areas are star clusters of young blue-white stars. Two bright round stars overly the
1:00 and 7:00 positions of the galaxy in this image, and are not part of NGC 2403, but instead are nearby stars within our own galaxy. NGC 2403 has
more recently been designated Caldwell 7.
This image combined 4 hours of luminance unbinned, with 90 minutes each of red and green and 110 minutes of blue exposures, binned 2x2, for a total
exposure time of almost 9 hours, obtained over 2 nights. An ST10XME camera was used through a Meade 12" LX200R and an AP reducer at the Hidden
Lake Observatory.
million light years in the faint constellation Camelopardalis (the giraffe), it lies in the same galaxy group as the better known M81 and M82 galaxies. The red
areas are bright emission nebulae of glowing hydrogen, and the hazy blue areas are star clusters of young blue-white stars. Two bright round stars overly the
1:00 and 7:00 positions of the galaxy in this image, and are not part of NGC 2403, but instead are nearby stars within our own galaxy. NGC 2403 has
more recently been designated Caldwell 7.
This image combined 4 hours of luminance unbinned, with 90 minutes each of red and green and 110 minutes of blue exposures, binned 2x2, for a total
exposure time of almost 9 hours, obtained over 2 nights. An ST10XME camera was used through a Meade 12" LX200R and an AP reducer at the Hidden
Lake Observatory.
Music: Bungle in the Jungle - Jethro Tull
