The Andromeda Galaxy is a spiral galaxy approximately 2.5 million light-years (2.4×1019 km) from Earth in the Andromeda constellation. Also known as Messier 31, M31, or NGC 224, it is often referred to as the Great Andromeda Nebula in older texts. The Andromeda Galaxy is the nearest spiral galaxy to our Milky Way galaxy, but not the nearest galaxy overall. It gets its name from the area of the sky in which it appears, the constellation of Andromeda, which was named after the mythological princess Andromeda. The Andromeda Galaxy is the largest galaxy of the Local Group, which also contains the Milky Way, the Triangulum Galaxy, and about 30 other smaller galaxies.
Imaging telescopes or lenses: Takahashi TOA-130
Imaging cameras: SBIG STL-11000
Mounts: Losmandy G11
Guiding telescopes or lenses: Orion ShortTube 80 f/5
Guiding cameras: Orion Star Shoot Planetary Imager & Autoguider
Software: photoshop, Maxim DL
Filters: L, Astrodon Red, Astrodon G, Astrodon Filter: Blue, Astrodon h-Alpha
Author: Maurizio Cabibbo
AstroPhotography of the day by SPONLI 14 Sep 2014