GALAXIES

Markarian’s Chain is a string of galaxies in the Virgo Cluster of galaxies - of which our own Milky Way galaxy is a member. This beautiful chain of galaxies starts at bottom center and curves up & to the right and lies in the constellation of Virgo which is most easily viewed in the spring in northern latitudes.

The two larger galaxies at bottom center are M84 and M86, and the one just out of the frame at top left is M87. M87 is not part of the chain but is a member of the Virgo Super Cluster. There are literally dozens of galaxies in the image, but most are too small to be seen clearly. The two smaller galaxies about dead center of the image are known as “The Eyes.” Some of the galaxies are seen edge-on and some are seen face-on. Some are spirals and some are elliptical. The larger galaxies (M84, M86 & M87) are approximately 60-70 million light years distant and many of the tiny ones are 100 million light years or more.

This image is my longest integration time to date at almost 4 hours. Data gathered on 5/6, 5/13, 5/14, 5/29 & 5/30, 2021 between the clouds and the rain! I plan to revisit this target again to gather more data the next time around.

Gear used, technical and capture details are here: Markarian's Chain (in the Virgo galaxy cluster) with M87 ( PSugg ) - AstroBin