10/1/04 NGC6946 Spiral galaxy in Cygnus

This is a beautiful galaxy which I shot last year around this time. This time around a waning gibbous moon was blazing but I couldn't resist a clear night. I shot it again this year mainly because a new Super Nova was recently discovered in NGC6946.

Click here to see a comparison of last year's shot with this years, highlighting the new nova. In addition to the Nova, this shot is a personal milestone for me. I have achieved good guiding with 5 minute long exposures. This has been a goal of mine for the last 2 years and this is the first image I have taken with my new found long exposure capability!