SUNSET: 
0
Photographer:
Jon Greif
Location of Photo:
Alpine, CA, USA
Date/Time of photo:
March 20 - April 24, 2026, between 8 and 10 pm PDT
Equipment:
TS-Optics 8" f/4 ONTC Newtonian Telescope, 10Micron GM1000HPS Mount, ZWO ASI2600MM Pro camera, ZWO Red, Green, Blue and Ha filters, MoonLite focuser, NINA acquisition software and Pixinsight processing software.
Description:
NGC 3180, also known as The Little Pinwheel Galaxy, is an unbarred spiral galaxy approximately 40 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. Its name comes from its resemblance to the Pinwheel Galaxy (M101). It was discovered by German-British astronomer William Herschel on 18 March 1787. NGC 3180 houses a high abundance of heavy elements. Its prominent Hydrogen II gas regions account for the pink/red coloration. The blue color of its spiral arms comes mostly from bright young blue stars. The image represents 17+ hours exposure time over the past two weeks.
