The Whirlpool Galaxy, also known as Messier 51a (M51a) or NGC 5194, is an interacting grand-design spiral galaxy located in the constellation Canes Venatici. It was the first galaxy to be classified as a spiral galaxy. The Whirlpool Galaxy lies 7.22 megaparsecs (23.5 million light-years) away from us and has a diameter of 23.58 kiloparsecs (76,900 light-years). Its companion, NGC 5195, is easily observed by amateur astronomers, and both galaxies can be seen with binoculars.
| Telescope | Newtonian 254/1000 mm |
| Aperture | 254 mm |
| Focal length | 1170 mm |
| Mount | Gemini G53f |
| Autoguiding | ZWO 174MM, TS 60/240 mm |
| Camera | ZWO 2600MC @-10°C |
| Corrector | TeleVue Paracorr 2″ |
| Filters | Antlia RGB |
| Exposure | 66x180s, Gain 100, bin 1×1, |
| Date | 2024-04-14 |
And here is the capturing process recorded: