M41 - Open Star Cluster in Canis Major
Copyright 2008 Hap Griffin
M41 is an open cluster of some 100 stars, several of which are red giants. The cluster is 25 light years in diameter and is about 200 million years old.
M41lies
at a distance of 2300 light years.
Date/Location:
February 2, 2008 Griffin/Hunter II Observatory Bethune, SC
Instrument: Canon 40D (modified IR filtering) Digital SLR through
10" Newtonian w/MPCC
Focal Ratio: f/ 4.7
Guiding: SBIG ST-401 through Orion ED80
Conditions: Cold and clear
Weather: 32 F
Exposure: 30 minutes total (30 x 1 minutes @ ISO 800)
Filters: Baader UV/IR block internal to camera
Processing: Focused and captured, RAW to TIFF conversion,
flat frame calibration, Digital Development, resizing and JPEG conversion in ImagesPlus. Color correction in Photoshop
CS2.