M 31 – Andromeda Galaxy

Pictures taken on Monday 20th October 2014 from Valtorta (BG)

The Andromeda Galaxy, also known as Messier 31, M31, or NGC 224, is a spiral galaxy approximately 780 kiloparsecs (2.5 million light-years) from Earth. It is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way and was often referred to as the Great Andromeda Nebula in older texts. It received its name from the area of the sky in which it appears, the constellation of Andromeda, which was named after the mythological princess Andromeda.

The Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies are expected to collide in 4.5 billion years, eventually merging to form a giant elliptical galaxy or perhaps a large disc galaxy. The apparent magnitude of the Andromeda Galaxy, at 3.4, is among the brightest of the Messier objects, making it visible to the naked eye on moonless nights, even when viewed from areas with moderate light pollution.

Source: Wikipedia

 

Equipment:
Takahashi FS 78 F/5
Canon 1100D JTW Astronomy
IDAS LPS 2 Filter
Guide scope Sky-Watcher 70/500mm
Guide camera Orion StarShoot
Mount Sky-Watcher AZ-EQ6

Shots:
Light 10 x 130s 800 ISO
Light 10 x 300s 800 ISO
Light 10 x 600s 800 ISO
Dark 5 x 300s 800 ISO
Dark 5x 600s 800 ISO

Processing:
Pixinsight 1.8, Photoshop C5