Messier 61 is a barred spiral galaxy located in the southern portion of the Virgo Cluster and lies at a distance of 52.5 million light years from Earth. It occupies an area of 6 arc minutes, corresponding to a spatial diameter of about 100,000 light years, roughly the same size as our galaxy. Messier 61 is classified as a starburst galaxy, one undergoing an extremely high rate of star forming activity. Eight supernovae have been detected in M61 in the last century, making M61 the current record holder among Messier galaxies.
Messier 61 – cropped image
Telescope: 16″ f3.75 Dream Scope
Camera: FLI ML16803
Mount: ASA DDM85
Exposure: 6.5 hours (42x300s L + 3x12x300s RGB)
Date: February – March 2022
Location: Southern Alps, France
Messier 61 – original FOV
Bart Delsaert - Astrophotography 