Galaxies
The Triangulum Galaxy
The Triangulum Galaxy (M33) photographed by Pete Lawrence: a spiral 3 million light-years away and one of the most distant naked-eye objects.
Target details
The Triangulum Galaxy (Messier 33) is a spiral galaxy about 3 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum. It's the third-largest member of the Local Group, after the Andromeda Galaxy and the Milky Way, yet it's also the smallest spiral in the group, and is thought to be a companion of Andromeda given how they move and how close they appear. It's one of the most distant things you can see with the naked eye. Its core is an H II region, a cloud of glowing hydrogen.
Capture details
Data captured 27th January, 2016.
14x 6 minute exposures at ISO200.
Equipment details
Orion Europa 200
NEQ6 Pro
Nikon d7100
Skywatcher ST-80
QHY5L-II
Processing details
This image was processed in Pixinsight & Lightroom.
Quick facts
- What is The Triangulum Galaxy?
- The Triangulum Galaxy (Messier 33) is a spiral galaxy about 3 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum. It's the third-largest member of the Local Group, after the Andromeda Galaxy and the Milky Way, yet it's also the smallest spiral in the group, and is thought to be a companion of Andromeda given how they move and how close they appear.
- Where is it in the sky?
- In the constellation Triangulum.
- What are its catalogue names?
- M33
- When was this photo taken?
- 27 January 2016
- What equipment was used?
- Orion Europa 200, NEQ6 Pro, Nikon d7100, Skywatcher ST-80, QHY5L-II
- Where was it taken from?
- Lisburn, Northern Ireland.