M81 is a Hubble class Sb spiral lying 11.8 million light-years away. Despite this classic appearance, it exhibits changes hinting at a recent disruptive interaction: the aberrant parallel dust lanes cutting across its disk, to the lower left of the nucleus. The responsible interaction likely occurred with M82, which appears far more disrupted. The dwarf irregular galaxy Holmberg IX to the right is a satellite analogous to one of the Milky Way's Magellanic clouds.

M104 is a lenticular galaxy with a large central bulge lying 31 million light-years from Earth. It is seen nearly edge-on, which brings its dark equatorial dust lane into sharp relief. The combination of the large central bulge and the dark dust lane give it a resemblance to a sombrero hat. Astronomer Vesto Slipher from Lowell Observatory was the first to measure the redshift of M104 and found it was receeding from us a velocity of 1,000 kilometers/second. This was some of the first evidence of the expansion of the universe from the Big Bang.

Exposures: L:R:G:B = 75:20:30:35 minutes = 2hours, 35 minutes total exposure at f/7.5.

NGC 4244 is an edge-on galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici and is part of the M94 group. It is also knows as the Silver Needle galaxy or Caldwell 26. It is not nearly as well known as several other “classic” edge-on galaxies in the sky, such as NGC 4565, NGC 5907, and NGC 891, even though it appears as large or larger than those galaxies in the sky. NGC 4244 lies 14 million light-years from Earth.

Exposures: L:R:G:B= 135:70:70:70 minutes = 4 hours total exposure at f/7.2.

NGC 3718 is warped spiral galaxy lying 52 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Ursa Major. It is warped by gravitational interaction with the galaxy NGC 3729 lying 150,000 light-yearsto the upper right of NGC 3718. The interaction of the galaxies has drawn NGC 3718’s spiral arms into long tidal tails clumped with blue clusters of newborn blue supergiant stars. Similar gravitational warping can be seen in the dark dust lane crossing in front of the galaxies yellow nucleus. The galaxy cluster Hickson 56, containing 5 gravitationally interacting galaxies, can be seen to the lower left of the bottom tidal tail. Hickson 56 lies at a distance of 400 million light-years.

Exposures: L:R:G:B =210:55:55:55 minutes = 6 hours, 15 minutes total exposure at f/7.5.

NGC 2683 is a spiral galaxy lying 25 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Lynx. It is viewed nearly edge-on from our perspective, much like M104, the Sombrero galaxy in Virgo. In the case of NGC 2683, the combination of the galaxy’s disk and large central bulge bear a strong resemblance to a flying saucer, giving it the nickname of The UFO Galaxy. NGC 2683’s disk contains many beautiful brown dust lanes. Along with colorful field stars, several distant galaxies are visible in the background.

Exposures: L:R:G:B = 300:75:85:120 minutes = 9 hours, 4o minutes total exposure at f/7.5.

This image was published in the April 26, 2021 issue of The Guardian, London, U.K.

NGC 6946 is a face-on spiral galaxy in the constellation Cygnus. It is also known as the Fireworks Galaxy because it exhibited ten supernovae during the 20th century. However, what is unusual about this galaxy is that it lies fairly close to the plane of the Milky Way in the sky. You can tell this by the large number of stars visible in the images. Very few galaxies are visible this close to the Milky Way because dense dust clouds within it usually completely obscure our view. Our view of this galaxy is still significantly dimmed by intervening dust within our Milky Way. NGC 6946 lies 25-million light-years from Earth.

Exposures: L:R:G:B=230:55:55:50 minutes=6 hours 30 minutes total exposure at f/7.2.

NGC 3628 is an edge-on galaxy in Leo. It is so named because the dark lane bisecting the galaxy looks like an edge-on hamburger patty and the galaxy on either side resembles the two halves of the hamburger bun. It is one of 3 galaxies that, along with M65 and M66 (see their image elsewhere on this website), comprise the “Leo Trio”. Note the faint tidal tail, due to interaction with other galaxies, curving away from the galaxy at the bottom center of the image. NGC 3628 lies 35 million light-years from Earth.

NGC 5033 is a beautiful spiral galaxy in the Constellation Canes Venatici. It is difficult to image because, despite its very bright nucleus, it has incredibly faint spiral arms that require long exposures. Estimates of its distance from Earth vary from 35-60 million light-years.

Image data: L:R:G:B=610:230:230:230=21 hours 40 minutes total exposure at f/7.2.

NGC 4565 is an edge-on Hubble class Sb galaxy that lies approximately 40 million light-years from Earth. It marks the Milky Way’s north galactic pole, just as Polaris marks the north celestial pole. We view it perpendicular to the dust plane, providing a view virtually unimpeded by dust.  It's equatorial dark dust lane divides its central bulge almost equally. Exposures: L:R:G:B=170:100:100:100=7hours 50 minutes total exposure at f/11.

This image was published in the March, 2017 issue of Astronomy Magazine. 

M65 and M66 are a close pair of galaxies about 30 million light-years away in the constellation Leo. M66 is on the left and M65 is on the right. M66 is in the process of active star formation out of its numerous dark dust lanes due to recent interaction with another galaxy. Thus, it exhibits red emission nebulae where star formation is occurring and bright blue spiral arms formed of OB star clusters that emerge from such nebulae. In contrast, its neighbor, M65, is rather quiescent and exhibits more of a yellow tinge, indicating large populations of older stars.

Exposures: L:R:G:B=

This image was published in the June, 2019 issue of Astronomy magazine.

M33 in Triangulum is a member of our local group of galaxies. It covers an area over 3 times that of the full moon. Although we think of M33 as one object, it actually contains 4 nebulae large enough to have their own NGC numbers and 10 star clouds with their own IC numbers. Nebula NGC 604 at the upper right of the image is one of the largest nebulae known, spanning an astounding 1500 light years.  Exposures: L:R:G:B=360:100:100:100 minutes=15 hours total exposure.

This image was published in the November, 2014 issue of Astronomy Magazine. 

M63 is a class Sb spiral galaxy. Unlike grand design Sb galaxies with 2 spiral arms, M63 is of the rarer "flocculent" design with arms that cannot be traced. The sigmoid whisp below the bright star at upper right is irregular galaxy UGCA 342 which may be a satellite analogous to one of our Magellanic clouds. Numerous faint background galaxies are visible, including an edge-on spiral which is reddened by M63's intervening dust. Exposures: L:R:G:B=152:48:48:52=5 hours total exposure at f/8.3.

NGC 891 is an edge-on Hubble class Sb galaxy in Andromeda. It's equatorial dust lane completely obscures its central nucleus. Ironically, this same dust lane would render our Milky Way galaxy invisible from most of NGC 891. Exposures: L:R:G:B=260:160:160:160 minutes=12 hours 20minutes total exposure at f/8.3.

This image was published in the March, 2017 issue of Astronomy Magazine and was also a Picture of the Day on Astronomy.com.

Within this remarkable field in Draco, no larger than a half moon, we can see three galaxies of different morphology. The upper galaxy is NGC 5985, a face on class SBb spiral galaxy. The middle galaxy is NGC 5982, a class E3 elliptical galaxy. The lower galaxy is NGC 5981, an edge on class SB spiral galaxy. The three galaxies lies between 100 and 140 million light-years from Earth. Numerous other more distant galaxies are visible throughout the field. Exposures: L:R:GLB=280:150:140:140 minutes=11 hours 50 minutes total exposure at f/8.3.

This is a long focal length view of a portion of Markarian's chain of galaxies in Virgo. The large elliptical galaxy at lower right is M86. It is Hubble Class E3 because it is slightly elongated rather than spherical. On the left side of the image are the interacting galaxies NGC 4438 and NGC 4435, known as "The Eyes". The edge on galaxy NGC 4402 is visible at upper right and other distant galaxies are scattered throughout the image.

Exposures: L:R:G:B:=320:60:60:60= 8 hours 15 minutes total exposure at f/7.5.

This image was published in the March, 2017 issue of Astronomy Magazine. 

Although classically considered a “grand design” spiral galaxy, M101's has a distinctly off center core and far flung spiral arms, likely from tidal interaction with some of its known satellite galaxies, like dwarf galaxy NGC 5477 at center left of the image. M101 has a diameter of 170,000 light-years and is 21 million light-years away.

Exposures: L:R:G:B=320:190:190:180 minutes=14hours 30 minutes total exposure at f/7.2,

This image was published in the March, 2020 issue of Astronomy magazine.

NGC 5907 is a spiral galaxy in Draco seen nearly edge-on and almost perfectly bisected by its dust lane. Because of this distinctive profile, NGC 5907 is known as the Needle Galaxy or Splinter Galaxy, which lies 50 million light-years from Earth. Exposures:L:R:G:B=395:125:125:125=12 hours 50 minutes total exposure at f/8.3.

This image will be published in the March, 2017 issue of Astronomy Magazine. 

M109 is a Hubble Class SBb barred spiral galaxies. Barred spiral galaxies have a bar extending from the central hub and the spiral arm trail from the ends of the bar, like streamers on bicycle handle bars. M109 lies approximately 85 light-years from Earth. Exposures: L:R:G:B=400:100:100:100 minutes=11 hours 40 minutes total exposure at f/8.3. 

This image was selected as Astronomy Picture of the Day on Astronomy.com. 

One of the satellite galaxies of M31 in Andromeda, NGC 205, is a large bright elliptical galaxy.  It is so elliptical that it is twice as long as it is wide, giving it a Hubble classification of E5. However, it is atypical in that most elliptical galaxies lack dust, but NGC 205 shows some dust clouds silhouetted near its bright nucleus. Although sometimes referred to as M110, it actually was not included in Messier's catalog. Exposures: L:R:G:B =170:90:90:90 minutes=7 hours 20 minutes total exposure at f/7.2.

This image was published in the March, 2017 issue of Astronomy Magazine.   

This image shows two interacting galaxies lying 40-50 million light-years away in Canes Ventatici. They are speeding away from each other, separated by 24,000 light-years. Both galaxies are thought to have originally been spirals, now distorted by the tidal forces of the interaction. The larger galaxy, NGC 4490, also known as the Cocoon Galaxy and the smaller galaxy is NGC 4485. Exposures: L:R:G:B=240:80:80:80=8 hours total exposure at f/11. 

NGC 7814, known as the Little Sombrero because of its similarity to M104, is an edge-on Sa galaxy in Pegasus. It is seen almost perfectly edge-on from our point of view, so the dust lane cuts through the very center of the galaxy. The dust lane almost disappears at its midpoint where it bisects and is nearly overwhelmed by a nucleus that is brighter on the north side. Exposures:  minutes= hours minutes at f/11.

M82 is emblematic of an irregular galaxy. It is nicknamed the Cigar Galaxy, which suggests a very elongated Hubble class E7 elliptical, but is rich in dust clouds and bright areas of star formation, which don't exist in elliptical galaxies.  It also appears discoid, but lacks defined spiral arms like a classic spiral. M82 is an irregular system in a burst of star formation, probably as a result of a galaxy merger Exposures: Ha:L:R:G:B=360:240:100:100:100minutes=15 hours total exposure at f/11.

This image was published in the March, 2017 issue of Astronomy magazine.

M100 is a classic, grand design, face-on spiral galaxy. It lies about 55 million light-years from Earth and is a member of the Virgo Cluster of galaxies, being one of it's largest members. It is difficult to image process because of its wide dynamic range. The spiral arms are faint and it has a tiny bright core. Exposures: L:R:G:B:=250:80:80:80minutes=8 hours 10 minutes total exposure at f/8.3.

This image was published in the January, 2018 issue of Astronomy magazine. 

M81 is a Hubble class Sb spiral lying 11.8 million light-years away. Despite this classic appearance, it exhibits changes hinting at a recent disruptive interaction: the aberrant parallel dust lanes cutting across its disk, to the lower left of the nucleus. The responsible interaction likely occurred with M82, which appears far more disrupted. The dwarf irregular galaxy Holmberg IX to the right is a satellite analogous to one of the Milky Way's Magellanic clouds. Exposures:L:R:G:B=430:70:70:70=10 hours 40 minutes total exposure at f/8.3.

NGC 7331 is a spiral galaxy about 50 million light-years from Earth. The image field contains 4 other spiral galaxies in the background by chance alignment. Those galaxies are about 500 million light-years from Earth. The entire group is known as the Deer Lick Group. Numerous other galaxies that are even more distant are visible scattered throughout the frame. Exposures: L:R:G:B=560:10:100:100:100=11 hours 40 minutes total exposure at f/8.3.

NGC 2903 is a barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Leo. It is quite bright and not far from galaxies M65 and M66, so it's hard to imagine how Charles Messier could have missed it and not put it in his famous catalog. 

Exposures: LRGB=330:80:80:80 minutes=9.5 hours total exposure. at f/8.3. Adaptive Optics at 7Hz. 

This image was published as a Picture of the Day on Astronomy.com

NGC 5866 is a lenticular galaxy lying about 50 million light-years from Earth. It is rare among lenticular galaxies in that it is bisected by a dust lane, as lenticular are usually devoid of dust. Lenticulars are thought to be a transitional form between spiral and elliptical galaxies that occurs as spiral and dwarf galaxies merge and eventually evolve into an elliptical galaxy. Another striking feature in this image is the extended halo surrounding the lenticular galaxy, which strong evidence of recent merging with other galaxies and the dust may be a remnant of recent merging. There is considerable evidence that NGC 5866 may be the missing M102 from Charles Messier's catalog and he simply made errors when recording its position. NGC 5866 is such a bright compact object that it is difficult to believe Messier could have missed it. The galaxy partially appearing at lower left is NGC 5870.

Exposures: L:R:G:B = 450:100:90:100 minutes = 12 hours, 20 minutes total exposure at f/11.

This image shows the enormous star cloud NGC 206 within M31, the Andromeda Galaxy. This star cloud contains approximately 300 intensely bright, hot, blue class O and B supergiants spanning a region approximately 4000 light-years in length. NGC 206 is on the edge of other blue star clouds that comprise a major blue spiral arm of M31. A separate, smaller star cloud is visible at lower right. 

Exposures: LRGB=650:240:240:220 minutes=22.5 hours total at f/8

This image was published in the December, 2017 issue of Astronomy magazine.

Although a grand design spiral, M101's has a distinctly off center core and far flung spiral arms, likely from tidal interaction with some of its known satellite galaxies. M101 has a diameter of 170,000 light-years and is 21 million light-years away. Exposures: L:R:G:B=275:80:75:75 minutes=8 hours 25 minutes total exposure at f/8.3.

NGC 4631 is an edge-on barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Canes Ventatici. It has the uncanny appearance of a large baleen whale seen in profile, complete with nebula comprising its eye, a cluster of blue stars for a pectoral fin, and even a haze above the blow hole that could represent a spout. It has a companion dwarf galaxy NGC 4627, which is often called the pup, even though a baby whale is supposed to be a calf. The center of the galaxy is a region of intense star formation, probably as a result of gravitational interaction between the them. The distance to the galaxies is about 30 million light-years.

Exposures: L:R:G:B =350:120:120:110 =11 hours 40 minutes total exposure at f/8.3

This image was published as a Picture of the Day on Astronomy.com