M 81 & M 82 – Bode’s Galaxy and Cigar Galaxy

Pictures taken on Saturday 07th May 2016 from Brumano (BG)

Messier 81 is the largest galaxy in the M 81 Group, a group of 34 galaxies located in the constellation Ursa Major. At approximately 11.7 Mly (3.6 Mpc) from the Earth, it makes this group and the Local Group, containing the Milky Way, relative neighbors in the Virgo Supercluster.

Gravitational interactions of M 81 with M 82 and NGC 3077[24] have stripped hydrogen gas away from all three galaxies, forming gaseous filamentary structures in the group. Moreover, these interactions have allowed interstellar gas to fall into the centers of M 82 and NGC 3077, leading to vigorous star formation or starburst activity there.

Source: Wikipedia

 

Equipment:
Takahashi FSQ 106 EDXIII F/5
CCD Moravian G2 8300
CCD Sbig 8300
Guide scope Tecnosky 60/228mm
Guide camera Starlight Xpress Lodestar X2
Mount Sky-Watcher AZ-EQ6

Shots:
RGB 6 x 600s
L 15 x 900s

Processing:
Pixinsight 1.8, Photoshop CC (2015)