NGC 3628 Left
| Telescope / Lens | TEC 140mm f/7 Refractor |
| Mount Type | Astrophysics 1200 |
| Camera | SBIG ST10XME |
| Filters | Astrodon LRGB |
| Film | CCD |
| Exposure | 165 minutes (2 hours 45 minutes); LRGB (L=120,RGB=15 each) 5 minute exposures |
| Processing | CCDSoft, CCDStack, AIP, Photoshop CS2 |
| Date | 04/20/2009 |
| Location | Eagles Ridge; 25 Miles South of Dexter, Oregon 122° 42′ 45″ W, 43° 48′ 17″N Observing site used by Eugene Astronomical Society |
| Conditions | 3411′ elevation, magnitude 6 Skies; Clear |
Leo trio of galaxies is located in the rear leg area of the Constellation LEO, the lion. They are situated halfway between the stars Chertan (3.3 magnitude) on top and 78-Iota Leonis magnitude 4.46, on the bottom. This is a small group of galaxies 35 million light years away. Shinning at magnitude 10.3, 9.7 and 9.4 respectfully, they are visible through a good pair of binoculars or small 4-6″ telescope. Wide field eyepieces produce a stunning view of the Leo Trio of Galaxies in larger aperture instruments of 12-16″.
NGC 3628 is an edge on galaxy discovered by William Herschel in 1784. Estimated at 300,000 light years across and 35 million light years away. Apparent magnitude of 10.2 and 15′ x 3.6′ (arc minutes) in size. This galaxy is also known as the Hamburger Galaxy or Sarah’s Galaxy and is a great example of an unbarred spiral galaxy discovered by William Herschel in 1784.
M 65 Galaxy NGC 3623 (Upper Right) and apparent magnitude 10.25 and 8.7′ x 2.45′
M 66 Galaxy NGC 3627 (Lower Right) 95,000 light years across, 8.9 mag. 9.1′ x 4.2′