Hoags Object, Ring Galaxy)
Hoags Object (galaxy) is a near perfect face-on ring galaxy in the Serpens constellation. It is about 600 million light years away and is about 100,000 light years in diameter. How the galaxy got its shape is still a mystery; possibly a collision with another galaxy billions of years ago. It was named after astronomer Art Hoag who discovered it in 1590. Hoag thought it looked like a planetary nebula, but the light coming from the ring did not have the wavelengths typically found in a planetary nebula. One object that I was unable to resolve is another far more distant ring galaxy, which lies between the nucleus and ring of this galaxy.
As of June 2016, this is my current distance record, which is over a 1/2 billion light years away. I have planned on capturing this for more than a year and half.
As of June 2016, this is my current distance record, which is over a 1/2 billion light years away. I have planned on capturing this for more than a year and half.
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Equipment
- Celestron 11 on a CGEM mount, Atik 460EX monochrome, Starizona F7.5 coma corrector, Orion off axis guider, and Starlight Xpress Lodestar X2 autoguider for guiding.
Image
- Luminance only:
Maybe next year I'll shoot some chroma (color).
Software
- Nebulosity for image capture, calibration, stacking, and preliminary processing. PHD2 for scope guiding. Final processing is with Photoshop CS5.1, Noiseware for noise reduction, and Gradient Exterminator for field flattening.
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