M-82 (NGC-3034) Sometimes called "The Cigar Galaxy", M-82 is a type I (irregular) starburst galaxy located in the constellation of Ursa Major. It lies 12.5 million light years from Earth and is 38,000 light years in diameter. The intense starburst activity is thought to have been triggered by interaction with nearby galaxy M-81. M-82 has also hosted many supernovae, the latest being the type Ia supernova SN 2014J, which is shown in this image.
This image is a 1 hour integration of 6 minute exposures through the C-11 at f/2 using the HyperStar III imaging system and the Starlight Express SXVR-H694C color CCD camera operating at -10 degrees below ambient temperature and binned 1 X 1. It was acquired on April 4, 2014, and was guided, captured and combined using Maxim DL5 Pro. Post processed using PhotoShop CS2, Gradient XTerminator, StarShrink, Carboni's Astro Tools and NoiseWare.