M51 - Before supernova 2011dh (the original image was cropped and then resized to 2x the original size)
Supernova 2011dh (the original image was cropped and then resized to 2x the original size):
On June 3 2011 I found that a supernova (2011dh) recently erupted in M51. As it happens I captured luminance data for M51 with my Astro-Physics AP160EDF refractor the day before the eruption and the day after (at New Mexico Skies). Note that I enlarged both images by 2x to present a "closer" look.
Image Details:
- Scope: Astro-Physics 160EDF 160mm F/7.5 Refractor with Flat-Field Corrector (FFC) operating at F/7.9
- Camera: SBIG STL-11000M
- Pre-Supernova Exposure: 3 x 30 mins Luminance - Middle exposure started on May 29th, 2011 at 11:41 pm MST
- Supernova Exposure: 1 x 30 minutes Luminance (with Supernova - Clouds rolled in preventing further exposures) - Exposure started on May 31, 2011 at 10:24PM MST
- Location: New Mexico Skies, Mayhill, New Mexico, USA
- Processing: Images captured with MaximDL, processed (dark subtracted/DDP) with MaximDL/CCDStack, cropped and final editing in PhotoShop CS5 Extended.
Here is an animation of the two images:
