Two bright spiral galaxies in Leo. M66 is on the left, and M65 is on the right. A third galaxy (NGC 3628, not visible in this image) is located above these two and forms a beautiful triangle that is easily viewed in small telescopes at low power.
The distance to these galaxies is approximately 35 million light years, and their combined mass is easily computed with a simple equation derived by Johannes Kepler 400 years ago (m1 + m2 = r^3/P^2).
The apparent separation of these two galaxies is 20', or about two-thirds the diameter of a full moon. M66 (on the left) clearly shows the effects of gravitational perturbation caused by its companion. M65 probably is experiencing similar distortion due to the gravitational influence of M66, but its angle conceals the effect.
Galaxy Pair in Leo
Date Taken:March 30, 2005
Location Taken: Conditions of Location:FWHM 2.4
Equipment Used:Takahashi TOA-130 5" apochromat refractor telescope with 1.6x extender (1600mm focal length), SBIG ST-10XME CCD camera, Optec TCF-S focuser, Astrodon RGB filters.
Processing Used:6x600 sec luminance, 4x100 sec RGB, guided (total exposure 80 min) processed in Maxim DL and Photoshop.
Distance from Location:35 million light years
Constellation:Leo (the "lion")
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