About this Object:
Messier 105 (M105, NGC 3379) is the brightest elliptical galaxy in the Leo I or M96 group of galaxies, and as such approximately 38 million light years distant. Investigations with the Hubble Space Telescope of the central region of M105 have revealed that this galaxy contains a supermassive black hole of about 50 million solar masses.

M105 is the bright elliptical at top center. Below and right of center is NGC3389 while the galaxy on the lower left is NGC 3384. While NGC 3384 is probably a member of the Leo I group as M105, NGC 3389 is probably a background object, as it is receding from us at 1138 km/sec, much more than M105 with its 752 km/sec, or the other members of the Leo I group at about 450..760 km/sec.

About this Photo:
Date(s): April 5, 2011
Location: From my driveway in Georgetown, Texas
Telescope: Celestron C9.25 @ F10
Mount: HEQ-5
Guiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider / Taurus Tracker III OAG
Camera: Canon 40D Modified
Filter: Astronomik CLS
Exposure: 12 x 600s @ ISO1600 (2 hours total)
Acquisition: ImagesPlus 3.75 Camera Control
Processing: ImagesPlus 3.75 – Darks,Flats,Bias
Post-processing: Adobe Photoshop CS3; Gradient Exterminator; Noise Ninja; Noel Carboni's Tools;
Temperature(s): 65º F