Messier 63 - Sunflower Galaxy

  • Location: Canes Venatici

    Distance: 35 Million Light Years

    Diameter: 98,000 Light Years

  • Celestron Nexstar 8SE Optical Tube Assembly

    Skywatcher EQ6-R Pro Telescope Mount

    QHYCCD 268C Dedicated Astronomy Camera (Cooled to -15C)

    Optolong L-Pro Light Pollution filter

  • Acquired over two nights, June 2 & 3, 2022.

    It’s made from 62 x 180-second (3-minute) subframes for a total of just over 3 hours of total exposure time with a gain setting of 60.

The Sunflower Galaxy has such an interesting structure, it was a no-brainer when I had the opportunity to shoot it during “Galaxy Season” in the spring of 2022. The lanes of dust combined with the newly-formed stars create the effect of a textured surface, reminiscent of a flower—maybe a sunflower?

The galaxy is in the same group, the M51 Group, as another of my favorite galaxies, Messier 51, the Whirlpool Galaxy. You can see a picture of it on this site as well here.