Messier 59 & Messier 60 and Friends
Part of the Virgo cluster of galaxies, M59 & M60 fit within the same tight frame of my Celestron 8″ SCT. Not only are the big (and over exposed) elliptical galaxies visible but many of their companions as well.
Messier 59 (top left) is about 50 million light years away, while Messier 60 (bottom right) clocks in at 57 million. M60 has only just begun interacting with nearby spiral galaxy NGC 4647, possibly restarting star formation in the much larger Messier galaxy.
Capture Details
Frames: 10×180″
Integration: 0.5 hours
Avg. Moon age: 26.94 days
Avg. Moon phase: 7.43%
Astrometry.net job: 3340227
RA center: 12h 42′ 47″
DEC center: +11° 34′ 12″
Pixel scale: 0.720 arcsec/pixel
Orientation: 120.355 degrees
Field radius: 0.473 degrees