How Many Subs

What to image in February with the DwarfLab Draco

Orion is still well placed after dark and the winter clusters in Auriga and Gemini ride high. Late in the evening the first galaxies of spring rise in the east: Leo, then Ursa Major. A month for both nebulae and, after midnight, the Bode and Cigar pair.

Moon in February 2027: new on 6 Feb, full on 20 Feb. Broadband targets (galaxies, clusters) want the week either side of new; emission nebulae behind a dual-band filter tolerate the rest.

31 targets transit near midnight in February. From a suburban sky the Draco gets a solid image of 19 of them in under an hour each; 12 need longer, or a darker sky, or several nights. Times below use the recommended filter and 30 s subs.

Solid image with the DwarfLab Draco, sorted by the Bortle 6 figure. Each link opens the full Bortle 1 to 9 table with sub-length and filter comparisons.
TargetTypeBortle 4Bortle 6Bortle 8
M35GeminiOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
M41Canis MajorOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
Beehive ClusterCancerOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
M46PuppisOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
M47PuppisOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
M48HydraOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
M50MonocerosOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
M67CancerOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
M93PuppisOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
Carina NebulaCarina, dual-bandEmission nebula15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
Rosette ClusterMonocerosOpen cluster15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
Eskimo NebulaGemini, dual-bandPlanetary nebula15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
Ghost of JupiterHydra, dual-bandPlanetary nebula15 min30 subs15 min30 subs15 min30 subs
Cigar GalaxyUrsa MajorGalaxy15 min30 subs28 min57 subs1 h 16 min152 subs
Owl NebulaUrsa Major, dual-bandPlanetary nebula24 min48 subs30 min61 subs53 min106 subs
M66LeoGalaxy17 min35 subs34 min68 subs1 h 30 min180 subs
M65LeoGalaxy21 min43 subs43 min86 subs1 h 56 min233 subs
M105LeoGalaxy25 min51 subs49 min98 subs2 h 11 min263 subs
Bode's GalaxyUrsa MajorGalaxy25 min51 subs52 min105 subs2 h 26 min292 subs
Rosette NebulaMonoceros, dual-bandEmission nebula49 min99 subs1 h 08 min136 subs2 h 10 min261 subs
M108Ursa MajorGalaxy35 min70 subs1 h 11 min142 subs3 h 16 min392 subs
M96LeoGalaxy39 min78 subs1 h 19 min159 subs3 h 39 min438 subs
Monkey Head NebulaOrion, dual-bandEmission nebula58 min117 subs1 h 20 min160 subs2 h 36 min312 subs
NGC 2903LeoGalaxy54 min109 subs1 h 56 min232 subs5 h 29 min658 subs
Hamburger GalaxyLeoGalaxy57 min115 subs2 h 04 min248 subs5 h 53 min706 subs
NGC 2403CamelopardalisGalaxy1 h 13 min146 subs2 h 39 min318 subs7 h 36 min912 subs
M95LeoGalaxy1 h 21 min163 subs2 h 52 min345 subs8 h 08 min977 subs
M109Ursa MajorGalaxy1 h 28 min176 subs3 h 07 min375 subs8 h 52 min1,064 subs
Cone and Christmas TreeMonoceros, dual-bandEmission nebula2 h 14 min268 subs3 h 09 min378 subs6 h 19 min759 subs
Jellyfish NebulaGemini, dual-bandSupernova remnant2 h 14 min268 subs3 h 09 min378 subs6 h 19 min759 subs
Thor's HelmetCanis Major, dual-bandEmission nebula3 h 32 min424 subs4 h 58 min596 subs9 h 54 min1,189 subs

Other telescopes in February: Seestar S50 · Seestar S50 Pro · Seestar S30 · Seestar S30 Pro · DWARF 3 · DWARF mini · DWARF II · Vespera II · Vespera Pro · Vespera 3 · Vespera Pro 2 · eQuinox 2 · Odyssey · Origin · Origin Mark II

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