Astrophotography Gallery

Unlike most spiral galaxies, which have well-defined arms, the Sunflower Galaxy is a flocculent spiral galaxy. Discovered in 1779 by Pierre Mechain, the Sunflower Galaxy is 27 million light years from us in the constellation Canes Venatici. This galaxy is about the same size as the Milky Way Galaxy and contains 400 billion stars. The Sunflower Galaxy is part of the M 51 Galaxy Group, whose most prominent member is the grand design spiral Whirlpool Galaxy (M 51).

Aries Mar 21 - Apr 19. The Pleiades is an open star cluster in the constellation Aries about 430 light years from Earth, meaning that the light we see today was emitted about 1600 AD. There are references to the Pleiades throughout ancient and modern culture, including in both the Iliad and the Odyssey. The Japanese car company Subaru derives its name and logo from this star cluster.