Atacama astrophotography dataset: Very deep field on M104, the Sombrero galaxy

M104: a deep field revealing its extended halo

With a total integration time of about 25 hours, this raw stacked image will reveal the very faint structures of the well-known Sombrero Galaxy. Thanks also to excellent seeing conditions, small scale structures will be visible in the higher S/N disk regions.

Inside this dataset pack you will find a small but useful set of files built for astrophotographers who want to test the data, compare their processing, and explore the potential of astrophotography from one of the darkest skies on Earth.

Included in this dataset:

• 1 stacked image file in FITS and XISF format at maximum resolution (6248X4176 pixels) taken with a 200 mm f/5 Newtonian telescope, ASI 2600MC camera operating at -10°C from Bortle 1 sky. Integration time of 151X600 seconds, with average seeing of 1.3 arcseconds, humidity around 40%, and mean autoguiding error (RMS) of 0.45 arcseconds. Each single frame has been calibrated with master dark frames, master sky flat fields and master bias frame (for flat calibration)
• 1 finished reference image processed following my workflow with PixInsight and Photoshop
• 1 short data sheet with acquisition notes
• 1 quick-start processing note

Usage note

This dataset is provided for personal learning and processing practice only. Do not share the raw image. You may share your processed version for non-commercial purpose provided that you credit the owner of the data (Daniele Gasparri).