Galaxy Groupings in Leo

[stevewanstall]

Celestron 9.25 at f6.3, SW EQ6R pro, Canon 550 D modded

The galaxy group Hickson 44 in Leo. This is based on 29 x 240 s, plus bias and flats.

Hickson 44 in Leo:

There are some other galaxies near by, some of which are names in this overlay from Astrometry.net:

Overlay from Astrometry, naming the other objects:

The main ones are NGC 3190, NGC 3185, NGC 3187 and NGC 3193. NGC 3190 has a well defined dust lane. NGC 3187 is a barred spiral galaxy with two arms. NGC 3193 is an elliptical galaxy.

The light captured by my camera last night left these galaxies just after the extinction event killed the dinosaurs on Earth.

From APOD: Galaxies, like stars, frequently form groups. A group of galaxies is a system containing more than two galaxies but less than the tens or hundreds typically found in a cluster of galaxies. A most notable example is the Local Group of Galaxies, which houses over 30 galaxies including our Milky Way, Andromeda, and the Magellanic Clouds. Pictured above is nearby compact group Hickson 44. This group is located about 60 million light-years away toward the constellation of Leo. Also known as the NGC 3190 Group, Hickson 44 contains several bright spiral galaxies and one bright elliptical galaxy on the upper right. The bright source on the upper left is a foreground star. Many galaxies in Hickson 44 and other compact groups are either slowly merging or gravitationally pulling each other apart.

 

 

Abell 1367

This image is based on 19 x 300 s , plus flats and bias. It shows a LOT of galaxies, in a grouping called Abell 1367. In this image you are looking at part of one of the biggest structures in the Universe, the Great Wall.

Wikipedia:
The Leo Cluster (Abell 1367) is a galaxy cluster about 330 million light-years distant (z = 0.022) in the constellation Leo, with at least 70 major galaxies. The galaxy known as NGC 3842 is the brightest member of this cluster. Along with the Coma Cluster, it is one of the two major clusters comprising the Coma Supercluster, which in turn is part of the CfA2 Great Wall, which is hundreds of millions light years long and is one of the largest known structures in the universe.

The overlay from Astrometry gives some of the galaxies visible in the image.

Edited March 16, 2020 by stevewanstall

[Rodd]

Looking good!  I think I would drop the brightness a bit.  the background will darken nicely, and the galaxies and stars are so bright (over bright) that the reduction will enhance detail and color.  It will also help with teh gradients

Rodd