AP#61 : NGC 5128
Name: The "Sunflower" galaxy
Constellation:Centaurus
Instrument: 8-inch F5 reflector with sky watcher coma corrector and an ASI 2600 MC (Gain 100 -20C).
Exposure time: A stack of 16 five-minute and 2 three-minute exposures.
Star Chart from Michael Vlasov's Deep sky hunter star atlas available on line https://www.deepskywatch.com/deep-sky-hunter-atlas.html
Magnitude: 6.8
Angular size: 25.7' X 20.0'
NGC 5128 is a peculiar object that is classified as a Lenticular or Elliptal galaxy. The most prominent visual characteristic is its prominent dust lane across the center. It is galaxy that has a super massive black hole at its center, which causes it to emit X-rays. It is sometimes referred to as the "radio galaxy" because of these emissions. Because of its declination, it is best imaged from states below 35 degrees latitude.
