M5 Cluster
Description: Globula Cluster
Common Name: Messier 5
Messier Catalogue: 5
NGC: 5904
Constellation: Serpens
Size: 23 Arc Minutes
Visual Magnitude: +5.65
Distance:24,000 Light Years
March - August
Imaging
The
most
important
thing
when
imaging
stars
&
clusters
is
to
make
sure
that
you
have
your
focus
bang
on.
It
is
worth
spending
the
time
to
get
your
focus
right
on
these
objects.
As
I
have
mentioned
before,
you
will
get
away
with
a
perfectly
good
image
from
shorter
exposures
on
clusters
but
to
get
the
deep
colours
you
need
to
take
longer
exposures.
The
image
above
is
a
combined
exposure
of
30
minutes
(10
x
180
seconds)
which
also
helps
to
bring
out
fainter
stars
in
the
background
which
gives
a
nice
backdrop
to
the
cluster in question.
Finding M5
Cluster
M5
can
be
found
north
of
the
Constellations
of
Libra
and
Virgo.
Locate
a
star
called
Mu
Virginis
(The
bottom
one
of
the
two
on
the
extreme
left
of
Virgo)
and
Zubeneschamali
(The
top
star
in
Libra
in
this
picture.
Create
a
virtual
elongated
triangle
and
M5
make
the
peak
of
this triangle.
Image Specification
Date Taken: 30/03/2019
Dark Site?: Yes
Telescope: Altair StarWave 70ED
Diameter: 70mm
Focal Length: 420mm
Reducer/Flattener?:
Barlow: 2x
Mount: iEXOS 100 PMC-Eight
Guided?: Yes
Guiding Software: PHD2
Filter: Semi-APO
Camera: Canon EOS 1000D
ISO: 800
Video: N/A
Light Frames: 10 x 180 Seconds
Total Exposure: 30 Minutes
Dark Frames:
Bias Frames:
Flat Frames:
Capture Program: BackYardEOS
Stacking program: DeepSkyStacker
Post Processing: PhotoShop CS3
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