M45


This was taken from the Austerfield Observatory as a test for the new Focal Reducer to the 106FSQ, on a clear night with the malevolent moon looking on through some haze and heavy dew, not the best of conditions, but it was a test for acreage and composition, and in that latter the cluster looks a bit lost, but perhaps because I'm used to seeing it fill the frame more.
I used the 106 with a .73 focal reducer and an M25C. The guiding was with the H9C in the Vixen260L and an AP .62 focal reducer, to gain a wider field for easier choice of fatter stars. All this sat on the AP900GTO mount. The exposure was 15x300sec. Calibration in Astroart with masterflat and master bias and stacked by sigma average. Finally processed in Photoshop.

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