More than astrophotography, an astronomical exploration.
Messier 3
David Cruz · Astromidnight
In Canes Venatici, more than half a million stars gather into a single ball of light. M3 is a globular cluster about 34,000 light-years away, one of the largest and brightest in the sky.
| Catalogue | Messier, 1764 · NGC 5272 |
| Type | Globular cluster |
| Distance | ≈ 34,000 light-years |
| Field | 52.0′ × 34.1′ |
| Scale | 0.34″ / pixel |
| Orientation | 181° · south up |
| RA (centre) | 13h 42m 14s |
| DEC (centre) | +28° 22′ 48″ |
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Objects in field | M3 · vZ 1128 · 2 quasars · 1 galaxy cluster |
Distance and number of stars of M3 according to NASA. Positions of the objects calculated from SIMBAD coordinates and the astrometry.net solution. The real width is not given because the field mixes objects at very different distances: at the distance of M3 it would be about 510 × 340 light-years.
6 h 00 min of light
Each tick is a 240-second exposure. 90 in total, with the camera at −10 °C and gain 100. Calibrated with 30 darks, 30 flats and 30 bias. The Moon stayed below 40 % illumination throughout.
Carbon Newton 10' f/4
ZWO ASI2600MC Pro
Twinstar Friction Mount FG80
Askar M54 OAG · ZWO ASI120MM Mini
APM 2" coma correcting 1.5x Barlow (APM-Komakorr-Barlow2)
Adobe Photoshop · Pleiades Astrophoto PixInsight · Stefan Berg Nighttime Imaging 'N' Astronomy (N.I.N.A. / NINA)
São Pedro da Gafanhoeira, Évora · 358 m
Bortle 3