NGC 5457 - The Pinwheel Galaxy

Messier 101, also known as the Pinwheel Galaxy, is a stunning face-on spiral galaxy located about 21 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. Capturing this beauty was a major project, requiring 25 hours of exposure time and the use of two filters to bring out its full potential. I used the Optolong L-Pro filter to preserve as much of the natural color of the galaxy as possible, allowing the subtle hues of the stars and nebulae to shine through. For the star-forming regions, I used the Optolong L-eNhance filter, which helped highlight the Hydrogen Alpha (Ha) and Oxygen III (OIII) emission areas, revealing the rich, vibrant regions of star formation.

In 2023, I was fortunate enough to capture Supernova SN 2023ixf in Messier 101, just one day after it was widely reported that a supernova had occurred in this galaxy. At the time, the supernova appeared as an incredibly bright dot in the image, though, two years later, it is no longer visible. Despite the absence of the supernova now, Messier 101 remains a beautiful and captivating galaxy, and I’m thrilled with how the final image turned out after 25 hours of exposure and extensive processing.