NGC 6946 - Fireworks Galaxy

IMAGE DETAILS

Object ............................................ NGC 6946 - Fireworks Galaxy
Constellation ............................... Cepheus & Cygnus
Distance + Ap. Magnitude......... 22.5  million Light years (6.9 Mpc) - 9.6
RA / DEC ..................................... 20h:34m.52sec / +60° 09m.14sec
Date + Time ...............................   29-30/5/15 & 12-13/5/2015 - 20:00 UTC
Location ....................................  "Nunki Observatory" - Skiathos
Optics .........................................  
Officina Stellare Advanced RILA 400
f/5.25
Tools ..........................................   The Sky X
Camera .....................................   SBIG STXL11002  with FW8G-STXL (Astrodon filters)
Exposure Time.......................     Luminance: 18 X 600sec RGB: 10 X 600sec
More Details ...........................    Environment Temperature : 24oC Camera Temperature -30οC
Mount .......................................   Paramount ME
Guiding ....................................   Self guided
Processing Details ................    Photoshop , Maxim
Notes ........................................   Weather: Clear - Transparence: Medium - Humidity : 65-85 %
Target details .........................
   NGC 6946, (also known as the Fireworks Galaxy, Arp 29, and Caldwell 12), is anintermediate spiral galaxy about 18 million light-years away, in the constellations Cepheus and Cygnus. It was discovered by William Herschel on September 9, 1798. NGC 6946 is highly obscured by interstellar matter of the Milky Way galaxy, as it is quite close to the galactic plane. The diameter of the galaxy is approximately 40,000 light-years or just about a third of the size of the Milky Way.

© Nikos Paschalis