[CheyenneWills]

   

M81 and M82

M81 (left) is about 12 million light years away and is 96000 light years in diameter.  M82 (right) is also about 12 million light years away and is 40800 light years in diameter.

Due to a gravitational influence from M81, M82 has a starburst region (the red area near the center of the galaxy) which is an area of active star formation. 

The image is a combination of 60 images that took a little over 3 hours to capture.

[burtonwc1]

The Andromeda Galaxy is typically cited as the farthest object one can see with the unaided eye, at a distance of about 2 million light years (it is readily visible from Jamestown on a dark clear night if you know where to look). However decades ago a colleague of mine (then with much younger eyes) claimed to see M81 and M82 in dark clear skies from Trail Ridge Road in RMNP, setting a new distance record of 12 million light years. I don't know if that feat has been duplicated--certainly not by me, now! I'll rely on telescopes and Cheyenne's beautiful astrophotos for my views of the galactic pair.
Bill Burton