Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Centaurus (Cen)  ·  Contains:  Centaurus A  ·  NGC 5128
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Centaurus A, Jeff Rothstein
Centaurus A
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Centaurus A

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
Centaurus A, Jeff Rothstein
Centaurus A
Powered byPixInsight

Centaurus A

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Description

Centaurus A, NGC 5128, is a very active and bright galaxy about 12 million LY distant, in, logically enough, the constellation Centaurus.  It is a powerful radio and X-ray source and harbors a supermassive black hole thought to be about 55 million times the mass of the Sun.  This galaxy appears to be the result of a collision between an elliptical galaxy and a smaller spiral galaxy.

At declination -43 degrees, it is visible from the Southern Hemisphere and low northern latitudes.  I captured this data at a dark sky site about 90 minutes SE of Tucson, AZ, in rural southeastern Arizona.  I had just over 3 hours on a single night, as the target moved from an altitude of 10 degrees, up to 15 degrees, and then back to 10 degrees.  Not an optimal elevation but I figured it might be a long time before I take my rig to the Southern Hemisphere, so I took the opportunity at hand.

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Centaurus A, Jeff Rothstein