Object:	M104: Sombrero Galaxy in Virgo RA = 12 hrs 40 min; Dec = -11 deg 37 min.
Date & Site:	Imaged on 5/09/16; Little Blair Valley, CA Conditions: moderate winds; 55 degrees; transparent; above average seeing
Equipment:	Telescope: DSI 10" RC f/7.3 at 1867 mm fl Mount: AP 1100 GOTO CP3 Camera: ST-10XME; CFW10; Hutech OAG-5 guider
Notes:	Exposures: 2 hrs of Lum (15 min subs), 30 min each of RGB (5 min subs) for total of 3.5 hours The Sombrero Galaxy has a diameter of approximately 50,000 light-years, 30% the size of the Milky Way. It was initially thought that the dust lane halo was small and light, indicative of a spiral galaxy, but Spitzer images show that the halo around the Sombrero Galaxy is larger and more massive than previously thought, indicative of a giant elliptical galaxy. This dust lane is a symmetrical ring that encloses the bulge of this elliptical galaxy (Wikipedia) Field of View = 12.58 x 11.27 arc minutes 30 million light years away Back to Images