M104 – THE SOMBRERO GALAXY + Cosimo Secli + L-Pro

M104 – THE SOMBRERO GALAXY

Credit: Cosimo Secli

Filters: Optolong L-Pro broadband light pollution filter

 

 

 

M104 – THE SOMBRERO GALAXY
M104 (also known as the Sombrero Galaxy) is a majestic unbarred spiral galaxy located in the constellation Virgo.
The galaxy has an incredibly bright nucleus, an unusually large central bulge, and a prominent dust lane in its outer disc, which is viewed almost edge-on.
The appearance of the galactic bulge and the dust lane running through it led to M104 being named after a well-known headdress (the Sombrero).
The galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its centre, with a mass of 1 billion solar masses.
The central black hole of M104 is one of the most massive black holes ever detected in any nearby galaxy.
The galaxy presents considerable challenges for imaging, as the object remains very low in the sky and does not rise higher than 34° above the horizon, with an apparent magnitude of 8.98, and is located at a distance of 29.3 million light-years from Earth.

 

 

 

TECHNICAL DATA:
Location: Novoli (LE) - ITALY - 17 April 2026                                                  

Mount: Skywatcher EQ6 R-PRO Synscan. 
Telescope: Tecnosky APO 130/910 Lanthanum LSD f/7-FPL 51 Triplet                  
Imaging camera: ZWO ASI 294 MC-PRO
Filter: Optolong L-Pro 1.25" 
Exposure: 100 x 180 sec.                                                                                                         
Processing software: DSS - PIXINSIGHT - PS (Camera Raw) 

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