Cigar Galaxy

M82, NGC 3034 · Galaxy in Ursa Major

Magnitude: 8.4
Size: 11′ × 4′
Effective surface brightness: 21.4 mag/arcsec²
Best months: Jan, Feb, Mar
Declination: +70°
Filter: None (broadband target)

An edge-on starburst galaxy with red hydrogen jets bursting from its core. Dual-band pulls the jets out of the glare.

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 Cigar 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	26%	15 min91 subs	23 min137 subs	57 min342 subs
ZWO Seestar S50 Pro10 s subs	13%	17 min100 subs	25 min151 subs	1 h 02 min372 subs
ZWO Seestar S3010 s subs	15%	17 min100 subs	24 min147 subs	59 min352 subs
ZWO Seestar S30 Pro10 s subs	8%	18 min107 subs	27 min160 subs	1 h 05 min393 subs
DwarfLab DWARF 315 s subs	11%	20 min82 subs	32 min130 subs	1 h 25 min341 subs
DwarfLab DWARF mini15 s subs	15%	15 min60 subs	23 min91 subs	57 min228 subs
DwarfLab Draco30 s subs	15%	15 min30 subs	19 min38 subs	47 min95 subs
DwarfLab DWARF II15 s subs	10%	1 h 02 min250 subs	1 h 24 min336 subs	2 h 59 min715 subs
Vaonis Vespera II10 s subs	13%	15 min91 subs	23 min137 subs	57 min342 subs
Vaonis Vespera Pro10 s subs	11%	36 min216 subs	52 min315 subs	2 h 04 min745 subs
Vaonis Vespera 310 s subs	13%	14 min86 subs	22 min131 subs	55 min328 subs
Vaonis Vespera Pro 210 s subs	11%	34 min204 subs	50 min299 subs	1 h 59 min712 subs
Unistellar eQuinox 24 s subs	32%	18 min277 subs	23 min350 subs	45 min669 subs
Unistellar Odyssey4 s subs	33%	1 h 36 min1,434 subs	1 h 53 min1,699 subs	3 h 11 min2,859 subs
Celestron Origin10 s subs	21%	5 min30 subs	6 min36 subs	16 min94 subs
Celestron Origin Mark II10 s subs	25%	5 min30 subs	8 min48 subs	22 min131 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.

Cigar Galaxy

How long with each smart telescope

Imaging the galaxy

Per-telescope pages