M106 and neighbors
About the Object
M106, the brightest member of the Canes Venatici II group is an interesting object in many aspects. At first, being one of the largest and brightest disks (comparable to Andromeda) it looks quite promising target also for sub ideal observing conditions, and also being a good Halpha source (so a good target during full moon late winter/early spring nights, when the Moon is bright and high but narrowband objects are rare). But it is also a surprisingly difficult object owing to the brightness contrasts in the Halpha: faint funnels coexist with extended bright star formation regions - and getting the one without overblowing the other I found quite challenging. Scientifically, M106 is also of interest as it host Cepheids of various metallicities, and is thus a major stepping stone for the cosmic distance ladder.
Observation Notes
Data were taken on 2025 February 20, 22, 23, and 2025 March 3 and 5.
Technical Details
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