M82

M82 is one of the most irregular galaxies in our galactic neighborhood. Due to a recent interaction with M81, this galaxy has tremendous amounts of star formation taking place. The image shows reddened outflows of material that extend hundreds and thousands of light years away from core of the galaxy. Curiously, this galaxy is exceedingly bright in the visible wavelengths of light- but even brighter in emissions at the radio wavelengths! Please visit this widefield image of M82 and M81.
Click on image for larger version.

Equipment

WIYN 0.9m Observatory
S2KB Professional Imager

Exposure Times

Luminance (synthetic) = 120 minutes
Red = 30 minutes
Green = 30 minutes
Blue = 30 minutes
Hydrogen Alpha = 30 minutes

Minimum credit line: Steve Peterson/ Katy Garmany/NOAO/AURA/NSF

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Updated: 01/30/2005