M-94 (NGC-4736) is a Type SA galaxy in the constellation of Canes Venatici (the hunting dogs). It lies 16 million light years from Earth and is 50,000 light years in diameter. Its inner spiral arms are smooth and very tightly wound. These inner arms are surrounded by a dim outer halo that extends to over 10 times the diameter of the core. M-94 was discovered by Pierre Mechain in 1781 and was added to Messier's catalog two days later as number 94.
This image, acquired on May 14, 2012, is a 33 minute integration of 3 minute exposures though the Celestron C-11 at f/2, using the HyperStar III imaging system and the Starlight Express SXVR-H694C color CCD camera. Guided, captured and combined using Maxim DL5 Pro. Post processed using PhotoShop CS2, Gradient XTerminator, StarShrink, Carboni's Astro Tools and NoiseWare.