The spiral galaxy IC 342: an image – 29 Jan. 2024.

IC 342 is a wonderful spiral galaxy, also known as the “Hidden Galaxy” because its brightness is remarkably obscured by dusty clouds in our Milky Way. Here it is our image.

The spiral galaxy IC 342: 29 Jan. 2024.

The image above comes from the average of 26, 120-second unfiltered exposures, remotely taken with the ARTEC250+Paramount ME+C3Pro61000EC robotic unit available as part of the Virtual Telescope Project facility in Manciano, Italy.

The “Hidden Galaxy”, as this galaxy is nicknamed, is relatively close (10 million light years) and if it was not behind dense clouds of dust of our Milky Way, we could see it by naked eye. It wins the bronze medal in angular size, after the Andromeda (M 31) and Triangulum (M 33) galaxies. It is one of the main members of the IC 342/Maffei Group.

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