Andromeda Galaxy

52x60 @ ISO800 f/5 750 mm

We enjoyed the trip to Temecula so much last month that we went back again to the vineyard. I added an Autoguider to my setup this month in hopes of having more salvagable data, and indeed it did help. Whereas on previous shots I would have to throw away just under 50% of the exposures, I could now keep about 80%. The CG-5 mount would still have a little bit of random jerkiness here and there which would ruin some exposures, but its less bothersome now.

So, this month I shot 4 targets. Two of them are the two largest (in apparent size) galaxies visible from the northern hemisphere: Andromeda and Triangulum. They are both part of our "local group" of galaxies. Then there is the Trifid nebula, which gets it name from the fact it has diffuse, emissive, and dark nebulas in one. Finally, M45, the Pleiades, a nice cluster of stars that you can spot even from bright city locations.