M85

NGC 4382 · Galaxy in Coma Berenices

Magnitude: 9.1
Size: 7′ × 5.5′
Effective surface brightness: 21.7 mag/arcsec²
Best months: Mar, Apr, May
Declination: +18°
Filter: None (broadband target)

A lenticular galaxy at the northern edge of the Virgo cluster, with NGC 4394 alongside.

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 M85, 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	16%	35 min210 subs	54 min327 subs	2 h 20 min842 subs
ZWO Seestar S50 Pro10 s subs	8%	39 min233 subs	1 h360 subs	2 h 33 min916 subs
ZWO Seestar S3010 s subs	10%	39 min234 subs	59 min352 subs	2 h 24 min866 subs
ZWO Seestar S30 Pro10 s subs	5%	41 min249 subs	1 h 04 min383 subs	2 h 41 min968 subs
DwarfLab DWARF 315 s subs	7%	46 min186 subs	1 h 17 min308 subs	3 h 29 min837 subs
DwarfLab DWARF mini15 s subs	10%	35 min139 subs	54 min217 subs	2 h 20 min560 subs
DwarfLab Draco30 s subs	9%	28 min57 subs	44 min89 subs	1 h 56 min232 subs
DwarfLab DWARF II15 s subs	7%	2 h 28 min594 subs	3 h 23 min812 subs	7 h 21 min1,765 subs
Vaonis Vespera II10 s subs	8%	35 min210 subs	54 min327 subs	2 h 20 min842 subs
Vaonis Vespera Pro10 s subs	7%	1 h 24 min506 subs	2 h 05 min753 subs	5 h 06 min1,835 subs
Vaonis Vespera 310 s subs	8%	33 min199 subs	52 min312 subs	2 h 14 min806 subs
Vaonis Vespera Pro 210 s subs	7%	1 h 20 min478 subs	1 h 59 min716 subs	4 h 52 min1,755 subs
Unistellar eQuinox 24 s subs	20%	44 min668 subs	57 min851 subs	1 h 50 min1,653 subs
Unistellar Odyssey4 s subs	21%	3 h 54 min3,505 subs	4 h 38 min4,173 subs	7 h 53 min7,089 subs
Celestron Origin10 s subs	14%	8 min51 subs	14 min84 subs	38 min230 subs
Celestron Origin Mark II10 s subs	16%	11 min64 subs	19 min112 subs	54 min322 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.

M85

How long with each smart telescope

Imaging the galaxy

Per-telescope pages