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Messier 99 in Coma Berenices
M99 is an spiral galaxy at the edge of the Virgo Cluster and located around 55 million lightyears away. It is somewhat smaller than our own galaxy, with a diameter of approximately 85,000 lightyears, with one spiral arm less tightly wound than the others.
It has many H II regions in the blue spiral arms, and a star formation rate three time greater than expected for a galaxy of its type.
This image is the result of 6h of RGB data capture from Horsham, over six evenings in April and May 2025. A ZWO ASI2600 MM Pro camera was used, through an 8-inch Teleskop-Service Ritchey-Chretien reflector.
Date: 02/05/2025
Location: Horsham, West Sussex
Photographer: Graham Wilcock
