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M108 - A Barred Spiral Galaxy
M108 is a nearly edge-on galaxy with no apparent central bulge or core. It is however rich in mottled, obscuring dust along its major axis. There is little evidence for a well-defined spiral structure. This member of a loose galaxy association called the Ursa Major cloud, lies about 45 million light years away and is receding at 772 km/sec. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781 and observed by Charles Messier shortly thereafter. However, it wasn't officially published and was re-discovered by William Herschel in 1789. Finally, Owen Gingerich added the galaxy to Messier's catalog in 1953 after consideration of Messier's notes and correspondence with Méchain.
Takahashi Epsilon180 astrograph (f/2.8); SBIG ST-8300M (-15 C); LRGB with Baader filters (Luminance 300"x5 (1x1 binned) and RGB 300"x3 (2x2 binned)); Takahashi EM-200 Temma 2M; CCDSoft, MaxIm DL5 and Photoshop CS4, Kent, OH, March 21, 2012
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