Monday 14 September 2009

M101 - Pinwheel Galaxy

M101 Pinwheel galaxy by Arran Hill

Full size image can be seen here : M101 with Canon 400D

M101 in Ursa Major
7 x 10 minute exposures (70 minutes)
Skywatcher 8" Newt / Canon 400D
Romney Marsh (Dark sky site)

M101, also known as the Pinwheel Galaxy, is about 27 million light years away. With a diameter of 170,000 light years it is nearly twice the size of the Milky Way. It is thought that M101 underwent a near collision with another galaxy, and the associated gravitational tidal forces caused the asymmetry.

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