M82: a starburst galaxy in Ursa Major

This irregular galaxy is at 17 million light years away. In the telescope it appears as a very faint elongated haze. To the right and left of the center, the red glow indicates regions of a breakneck-paced star formation.

Image processing: CCDoops + CCDSoft + CCDsharp + Photoshop CS.

Images taken: Feb. 22-26, 2014.

Telescope: CDK 17-in with f/4.6 focal reducer.

Camera: SBIG ST-10 CCD

Exposures: 2 sets of 20 min red, green, blue, and H-alpha images (~3 hours total).

Image processing: CCDoops + CCDSoft + CCDsharp + Photoshop CS.