The Sombrero Galaxy

The Sombrero Galaxy (also known as M104) is a lenticular galaxy about 31.1 million light-years) from Earth. The galaxy has a diameter of approximately 30% the size of the Milky Way. It has a bright nucleus, an unusually large central bulge, and a prominent dust lane in its inclined disk. The dark dust lane and the bulge give this galaxy the appearance of a sombrero hat. Its large bulge, its central supermassive black hole, and its dust lane all attract the attention of professional astronomers.

The Leo Triplet - Three Galaxies

The Leo Triplet is an interesting group of three mutually interacting galaxies that are often observed and photographed within a single field of view. The Leo Triplet includes spiral galaxies M65 (lower right), M66 (lower left), and NGC 3628 (upper left). This group of galaxies is found in the constellation Leo, all of them are about 35 million light years from the earth.

Galaxy M83

Here is a face-on view of the barred spiral galaxy Messier 83, the southern pinwheel galaxy. (It is believed that our own Milky Way galaxy would look very much like M83 if we could view it from outside, although the Milky Way is about twice as large as M83 is.) Notice the bright central nucleus, the well-formed spiral arms, the central bar, and the dark dust lanes.

The Horsehead Nebula

The Horsehead Nebula consists of a cloud of ionized gas lit from within by young, hot stars; a dark cloud containing interstellar dust lies immediately in front. The dust absorbs the light from part of the ionized cloud. A portion of this dark cloud has a shape somewhat resembling a horse’s head. The nebula is located 1,300 light-years from the Sun.

The Christmas Tree Star Cluster

The Christmas Tree Cluster was named for its triangular shape, formed by a cluster of very young stars, that looks like a tree in visible light. The bright variable star S Monocerotis (near the bottom) marks the base of the Christmas tree and lights up the nearby nebulosity.

The Flame Nebula

The Flame Nebula, designated as NGC 2024, is an emission nebula in the constellation Orion. It is about 900 to 1,500 light-years away.

The Owl Nebula and Surfboard Galaxy

The Owl Nebula (also known Messier 97) is a planetary nebula located approximately 2,030 light years away in the constellation Ursa Major. When William Parsons observed the nebula in 1848, his hand-drawn illustration resembled an owl’s head. It has been known as the Owl Nebula ever since. The nebula is approximately 8,000 years old. It is approximately circular in cross-section with a little visible internal structure. The nebula is arranged in three concentric shells, with the outermost shell being about 20–30% larger than the inner shell. The owl-like appearance of the nebula is the result of an inner shell that is not circularly symmetric, but instead forms a barrel-like structure aligned at an angle of 45° to the line of sight.

Galaxies M81 and M82

Here are two nearby galaxies taken from my back yard with my new astrograph telescope. M81 is face-on and its neighbor M82 is edge-on. Dust clouds in the latter are especially noticeable.

The Whirlpool Galaxy

M51, better known as the Whirlpool Galaxy, is a magnificent face-on spiral galaxy. The Whirlpool Galaxy is interacting with a smaller companion, NGC 5195, a dwarf galaxy connected to its larger neighbour by a tidal bridge of dust. The bridge is visible in images of the pair silhouetted against the central region of the smaller galaxy. It lies at an approximate distance of 35 million light years from Earth.

The Rosette Nebula

The Rosette Nebula (NGC 2237) is a large spherical H II region (circular in appearance) located near one end of a giant molecular cloud in the Monoceros region of the Milky Way Galaxy. The open cluster NGC 2244 is closely associated with the nebulosity, the stars of the cluster having been formed from the nebula’s matter.