M45 + Giacomo Pro + L-QEF (L-Quad Enhance Filter)

M45

Credit: Giacomo Pro

Filters: Optolong L-QEF (L-Quad Enhance Filter)

 

 

 

 

The Pleiades (M45)
Also known as the Seven Sisters or by the Messier catalogue designation M45, they are an open cluster visible in the constellation Taurus. This relatively close cluster (440 light years) contains several stars visible to the naked eye. In urban areas, only four or five of the brightest stars are visible, while in darker locations, up to twelve can be seen. All the components are surrounded by faint reflection nebulae, which are particularly visible in long-exposure photographs. It is noteworthy that the stars of the Pleiades are very close to each other, have a common origin and are bound together by gravity.
Given their distance, the stars visible in the Pleiades are much hotter than normal, which is reflected in their colour: they are blue or white giants. The cluster actually contains hundreds of other stars, many of which are too distant and cold to be seen with the naked eye. The Pleiades are a young cluster, with an estimated age of about 100 million years and an expected life of only another 250 million years, as the stars are too far apart.
Viewing through a low-magnification telescope still allows you to appreciate the overall nature of the cluster, while at higher magnifications it is not possible to see it all through the eyepiece; more powerful telescopes can show some faint, diffuse blue nebulae among the components, which reflect the light of the main stars of the Pleiades.
The main components of the open cluster are: Alcyone, Atlas, Electra, Maia, Merope, Taygeta, Pleione, Celeno and Asterope.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Light: 310 x 180"
Filter: Optolong Astronomy Filter L-Qef
Camera: Asi 294 mc pro
Telescope: Sharpstar 94 EDPH
Mount: Skywatcher Eq 6-r Pro
Acquisition: Asiair Plus
Software: DSS - Pixinsight – Photoshop
Shots: 14 – 20/11/2025
Location: Torricella (TA) ITALY
SQM: 19.65
Author: PRO’ GIACOMO.

 

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