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).

Cancer Jun 21 - Jul 22. The Medusa Nebula is a large but very faint planetary nebula. It was first observed by UCLA astronomer George Abell in 1955. Located near the constellation Cancer, it’s about 1500 light years from earth. The intertwined filaments in the nebula are reminiscent of the serpent hair of Medusa in Greek methology.