M95 in Leo is a barred spiral galaxy approximately 33M light-years away. It has a bright ring of active star formation around the nucleus containing clumps of new star clusters.? This ring structure has an unusual relationship with the dust lanes near it, something that is not understood. The violent star formation in the ring is also ejecting massive bubbles of hot gas that then affect star formation elsewhere in the galaxy, a phenomenon known as stellar feedback.
The image was captured during 4 nights in March 2024 from SkyPi Remote Observatory using a 12.5" PlaneWave scope and a QSI-640ws camera at f/8 for a final LRGB integration of 15.5 hours.? Despite its brightness, it is a low-contrast target and I found it surprisingly tricky to process.
