Bode's Galaxy

M81, NGC 3031 · Galaxy in Ursa Major

Magnitude: 6.9
Size: 27′ × 14′
Effective surface brightness: 22.0 mag/arcsec²
Best months: Jan, Feb, Mar
Declination: +69°
Filter: None (broadband target)

A big, bright grand-design spiral that circles the pole for northern imagers, so it is available all year. Shares a frame with M82.

Reachable from mid-northern latitudes (UK, northern US, central Europe) and from the south.

How long with each smart telescope

Total integration for a solid image of the Bode's Galaxy, default sub length, recommended filter, and how much of each frame it fills. Click a cell for the full Bortle 1 to 9 table.
Telescope	In frame	Bortle 3 (rural)	Bortle 5 (suburban)	Bortle 7 (urban edge)
ZWO Seestar S5010 s subs	63%	25 min152 subs	41 min244 subs	1 h 48 min647 subs
ZWO Seestar S50 Pro10 s subs	33%	28 min169 subs	45 min269 subs	1 h 57 min704 subs
ZWO Seestar S3010 s subs	38%	28 min171 subs	44 min263 subs	1 h 51 min666 subs
ZWO Seestar S30 Pro10 s subs	20%	30 min182 subs	48 min286 subs	2 h 04 min744 subs
DwarfLab DWARF 315 s subs	27%	33 min134 subs	57 min229 subs	2 h 41 min643 subs
DwarfLab DWARF mini15 s subs	38%	25 min101 subs	40 min162 subs	1 h 47 min430 subs
DwarfLab Draco30 s subs	36%	20 min41 subs	33 min67 subs	1 h 29 min178 subs
DwarfLab DWARF II15 s subs	25%	1 h 51 min443 subs	2 h 33 min614 subs	5 h 39 min1,358 subs
Vaonis Vespera II10 s subs	31%	25 min152 subs	41 min244 subs	1 h 48 min647 subs
Vaonis Vespera Pro10 s subs	28%	1 h 02 min371 subs	1 h 34 min565 subs	3 h 55 min1,410 subs
Vaonis Vespera 310 s subs	31%	24 min144 subs	39 min233 subs	1 h 43 min619 subs
Vaonis Vespera Pro 210 s subs	27%	58 min351 subs	1 h 29 min536 subs	3 h 45 min1,348 subs
Unistellar eQuinox 24 s subs	79%	34 min504 subs	43 min648 subs	1 h 25 min1,274 subs
Unistellar Odyssey4 s subs	80%	2 h 58 min2,675 subs	3 h 33 min3,196 subs	6 h 05 min5,476 subs
Celestron Origin10 s subs	53%	6 min36 subs	10 min63 subs	29 min177 subs
Celestron Origin Mark II10 s subs	60%	7 min45 subs	14 min83 subs	41 min247 subs

Open in the calculator

Imaging the galaxy

Galaxies are broadband targets: their light is mostly starlight spread across the spectrum, so a dual-band filter throws most of it away and makes things slower, not faster. Shoot without a filter (or with a plain UV/IR cut) and rely on total time and a dark sky. The core of a galaxy is usually many times brighter than its outer disc, so a short stack shows the nucleus long before the arms; the figures here are for the arms and disc, not the core.

Field rotation in Alt-Az mode crops the edges of the stack over a long session, so on a big galaxy re-centre now and then or use EQ mode where your scope supports it.

Bode's Galaxy

How long with each smart telescope

Imaging the galaxy

Per-telescope pages