SMALL MAGELLANIC CLOUD

NEIGHBOUR GALAXY IN TUCANA

 (Image Centred at: ra: 0:58.2/ dec -72:50)

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Intendente Alvear Provincia de la Pampa, Argentina

DATA

TYPE: Irregular Galaxy

Visual brightness: 2.3

Apparent Diameter: 280 x 160 arc minutes

DISTANCE: 210.000 lights years

IMAGE INFORMATION

SCOPE: TMB 92 SS at f5.5

CAMERA: QSI 583 WS at -15C

MOUNT: NEQ6

GUIDING: Orion Short Tube 80 f 5 - AstroArt 3.0 - Control Interface 3.72 plug in

FILTERS: Baader LRGB Astronomik Ha 6nm

SKY CONDITIONS: transparency and seeing good.

EXPOSURES: LHaRGB (30,30,30,30,30)

PROCESSING: Images Plus. No darks no flats no bias used. Color Combination in Images Plus. Photoshop CS2

OBJECT DESCRIPTION AND IMAGE SESSION

The SMC is an irregular galaxy type. It might be distorted by the gravitational forces of our Milky Way and the LMC. Interesting to see a variety of extra galactic objects like nebulae and star clusters which can be reached through amateurs telescopes. The bright object in the middle is NGC 346 in changing its shape through the cosmic eras. Massive interactions of light wind heat and star radiation are pushing far away interstellar gas that shines in a wide color spectrum. Few arc minutes on top is visible NGC 371 is an open star cluster surrounded by ionized hydrogen. It has 5 arc minutes size and very active star forming region.

The SMC and LMC were certainly known through ages by the southerners. It became known to the world when Fernando de Magallanes went on his journey around the world in 1519.