Hickson 68 is a Hickson Compact Galaxy Group (also known as HCG 68). Canadian Astronomer Paul Hickson published a list of 100 compact galaxy groups in 1982. These groups are dominated by dark matter which results in strong galaxy interaction that may result in their merging and the eventual demise of the group.

Technical Information       

Date:                       April, 2014

Location:                 Green Valley, Arizona

Telescope:              Takahashi FSQ-106EDX

Camera:                  SBIG STT-8300M

Filters:                     Astrodon Gen 2

Mount:                     AstroPhysics 1200

Exposure:                LRGB = 570:130:130:130 minutes, all unbinned

Software:                 Acquisition: Maxim DL 5, TheSkyX, Pinpoint, CCD Commander

                                Processing: CCDStack, PhotoShop CS6 with various plugins