M65 (right) and M66 are two spiral galaxies lying at a distance of 35 million light years in the constellation Leo. M66's face is more open to our view and presents us with a more complex view of dark dust lanes, red emission nebula and blue spiral arms. This forms a sharp contrast with M65's relatively more edge-on view and more yellowish appearance, although it still has a prominent dust lane and a few blue star clouds in its spiral arms.
Acquisition data:
Telescope/Mount: Celestron Compustar C14 with Starizona LF reducer/corrector (f/7.5)
Camera: SBIG STL 11000 with Baader Planetarium LRGB filters.
Other: SBIG AO-L adaptive optics at 8 Hz.
Location: Pommier Observatory, Portland, OR, USA
Dates: 2017-04-15 through 2018-05-02,
Exposures: L:R:G:B = 210:60:60:60 =6 hours 30 minutes total exposure.
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