M81 and IFN

[RickS]

A fairly deep M81 processed to show the IFN. Even with lots of data it's a bit of a mess and I'm sure I should be able to do better, but that's a project for another day :)

The bulk of the data was captured with a TEC 160FL at Deep Sky West belonging to Jim and Linda Powell. I did blend a smidge of data from the RCOS 14.5 there just to add a little detail. That's why there are diffraction spikes.

Scope: TEC 160FL FL=1152.68mm
Mount: Paramount ME
Camera: SBIG STF-8300M
Filters: Astrodon
Image scale: 0.966 arcsec/pixel (Drizzled up)
Exposures: 23x900s R, 21x900 G, 25x900s B, 118x600s + 8x900s L, 10x1800 H (~44 hours)
Processing: PixInsight 1.8

There's a high res version on Astrobin: http://www.astrobin.com/292719/0/

Thanks for looking.

Cheers,
Rick.

[cometcatcher]

Oooohh that's deep. Wonderful shot. What's that little blue patch to the left? Still part of M81 or something in our galaxy?

[el_draco]

Absolutely gob smacking. Detail is superb :thumbsup:

[RickS]

Thanks, Kevin. The little blue patch is Holmberg IX aka PGC 28757. It's a dwarf irregular galaxy that's a satellite of M81.



Thanks, Rom.

[topheart]

Hi Rick,
Congratulations.....that is absolutely stunning!!

What a great job you have done with the deep capture and processing to show the IFN.

Awesome!
Cheers,
Tim

[DJScotty]

That's a great image Rick.
You should be very happy with it.
Scott

[beren]

:thumbsup: wow, spectacular Rick congratulations

[astroron]

Cracker of an Image Rick :eyepop:
Just for clarity what does IFN stand for :question:
I have always known the fuzzy stuff as Galactic Cirrus.
Cheers:thumbsup:

[Placidus]

Sob ! Oh, I wish we could see that from here.

Truly excellent processing.

Mike

[alpal]

Hi Rick,
that's super deep - what a great image.
It shows the worth of a remote observatory -
especially in New Mexico at 7400 feet in Altitude.
It's sure a lot better than trying to image from cloudy Melbourne.

cheers
Allan

[Paul Haese]

Nice Rick, Great field of view, surround cirrus and drama of the scene. Really like this.

[Retrograde]

Fantastic, deep image and such a picturesque galaxy. Pity we can't see it from our latitudes.

[Stevec35]

Great work on this one Rick! One of the best shots of M81 that I've seen.

Cheers

Steve

[atalas]

Awesome Rick!:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

[cometcatcher]

Integrated Flux Nebula, Ron. https://www.spacetelescope.org/projects/fits_liberator/fitsimages/rogelio_bernal_andreo_1/

[RickS]

Thanks, Tim!



Thanks, Scott. I'm never entirely happy with my images ;)



Thanks, Stuart!



Thanks, Ron. The link Kevin shared explains the origin of the IFN term. Here's another link with some more info and a fantastic wide view of the Polar Spur: http://www.galaxyimages.com/UNP_IFNebula.html



Thanks, Mike. It is huge shame. We need to set up an astronomer exchange program :D



Thanks, Allan. Brisbane hasn't been much better so I really value the remote data!



Thanks very much, Paul.



Ta, Pete.



Thanks, Steve.



..and thanks, Louie. We've missed you!

[niharika]

Oh God....n how did you make it look soo pretty!!! Beautiful image Rick. Very well done.

[gregbradley]

Good one Rick. Nice and Deep and really well processed.

Greg.

[astroron]

Thanks Kevin and Rick for the links and information :thanx:
I am sure there are quite a few people viewing this image
Appreciated it. ;)
Definitelya splendid image for sure.
Cheers:thumbsup:

[Spookyer]

Really jumps out of the background that one!

Brett

[RickS]

Thanks, Raki, Greg & Brett!

[Decimus]

:eyepop: Move over Hubble, I say! A magnificent image of M81, Rick! Congrats!:thumbsup:

Cheers,
Richard

[RickS]

Thanks, Richard :lol:

[IanP]

magnificent, magnificent, magnificent ....

[alpal]

Hi Rick,
I start to wonder sometimes why I spent so much money
on something that I can very seldom use.
I have often thought about selling my equipment due to the awful weather & lack of time to use it.
I am lucky to get one picture every 3 or 4 months.
In fact -I've only managed 2 pictures in the last year -
maybe my money would have been better spent on remote robotic telescope hire?
You may have found the solution.

cheers
Allan

[strongmanmike]

Not a bad M81 that.......for a southerner :P

Seriously, looks great Rick, particularly the Galactic Cirrus :thumbsup:

I would display it with the galaxy horizontal though :)

Mike

[ozstronomer]

Beautiful image Rick, well done with the processing :thumbsup:

Cheers Geoff

[PRejto]

Bravo!! Fantastic. Love the cirrus.

Makes me even more excited to finally have a plan to move my TEC180 to a dark site. Pity it won't be at a high elevation, but anything is better than Sydney!

Peter

[cazza132]

Whah! :eyepop:That is deep dude! Probably faint details never imaged before. I know there is some HDR work there around the core, but thinking a lift in the mid tones for the periphery of the core might serve well (while pulling black clipping slightly). On the other hand, you may loose some punch doing that (very subjective). Stunning details around that area though. The cool thing is that you have shown the zones of recent star development (blue giants in the outer arms) and older yellow stars closer to the core. Amazing work!!! :thumbsup:

[RickS]

Thanks, Ian.



I love to get out under the stars with a scope but it happens so rarely these days that good weather and new moon coincides with free time :(



Thanks, your Mikeness :D I probably would have gone horizontal too if I had been involved in the planning. Looks like I'll be able to decide on the framing of the next target for that scope.



Thanks, Geoff!



Thanks, Peter. The TEC180 should be killer under dark skies.



Thanks, Troy. I did try a few things to improve the balance but couldn't come up with anything I liked better. Might be a repro in future...

[DJT]

Crickey..a stunning image, the detail is quite something.

Well done.:thumbsup:

[markas]

Rick, that is superb!

I'd love to know if you used any special processing to bring out the IFN, or was it all exposure time?

Whatever, it's amazing.

Mark

[RickS]

Thanks, David.



Thanks, Mark. It's mostly down to the amount and quality of the luminance but I did try to squeeze as much out of it as possible during processing (included synthetic lum derived from the colour data, stretched it to within an inch of its life, etc.)

[alpal]

Hi Rick,
It's a wonderful feeling to see raw data coming straight off the camera
that already forms a great picture.
I've seen that with 20 minute subframes in Ha while outside with the laptop.

cheers
Allan

[el_draco]

I just keep coming back to this and going "ooh ahhh" Spectacular shot

[Andy01]

Lots of amazing detail there Rick!
However it's compositionally awkward imo, echoing Mike's comments maybe a 90 degree rotation and crop to the rule of thirds could help? :scared3:
Galactic cirrus huh? As Spock would say - Fascinating....

[multiweb]

Great stuff Rick. Pretty deep. :thumbsup:

[RickS]

Ta, Rom!



Thanks, Andy. Yes,I would have cropped differently but I didn't want to lose too much of the fluffy stuff. I have a much wider FOV from another scope. Maybe I can do a nice composition with 3 sets of data :question:



Thanks, Marc.

[Slawomir]

Lovely image, exceptional processing. I particularly like the look of dusty areas and starfields around the galaxy :thumbsup:

[RickS]

Thanks, Suavi!

[billdan]

Well done Rick, great colours, you must have a lot of patience to capture 44 hours of data, but its certainly worth the effort.

Cheers
Bill

[RickS]

Thanks, Bill. The scope is automated so collecting lots of data is easy though there's never enough good weather :D

[Shiraz]

crackerjack image Rick.

Your consistency is making top shelf image processing all look so straightforward and routine - whereas it is anything but.

[RickS]

Thanks, Ray!

[astronobob]

Majestic, dazzling, marvellous, magnificent exquisite - bla bla bla ;) :P :D
Im always Lost for words seeing your Images , Rick, that above line is copy/past from thesaurus. :lol:
Legendary stuff man ..

[RickS]

Thanks, Bob :D

[Star Catcher]

That is an impressive result!
Ted

[Octane]

Mate, that is simply outstanding. Can get lost looking at it.

H

[RickS]

Thanks, Ted & H!