M44, also known as the Beehive Cluster or NGC 2632, is one of the closest open clusters, lying approximately 500 light years away, and is an excellent object to view with binoculars. It appears as a small nebula to the naked eye but through a telescope is shown to contain at least 1000 gravitationally bound stars.

Technical Information       

Date:              February, 2015
Location:        Green Valley, Arizona
Telescope:      Takahashi FSQ-106EDX
Camera:         SBIG STT-8300M
Filters:             Astrodon Gen 2
Mount:             AstroPhysics 1200
Exposure:        RGB = 60:60:60 min., all unbinned
Software:        Acquisition: Maxim DL 5, TheSkyX, Pinpoint, CCD Commander
                        Processing: CCDStack, PhotoShop CS6 with various plugins