Supernova 2017eaw in NGC 6946

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.© astropix.nl

On May 14, 2017 a supernova was detected in NGC 6946, also dubbed "The Fireworks Galaxy", by P. Wiggins from Utah. This was the 10th supernova that was detected in this galaxy since the first one was found in 1917. So it certainly earns its nickname.

Beilen observatory had to wait for almost a week for favourable weather before the supernova could be imaged. The telescope is fully controlled by ACP Scheduler now, software that uses a database with targets to plan observations. As soon as the weather is safe at night (dark, clear, dry and not too much wind), the roof of the observatory opens automatically and the most favourably placed object is chosen from the database by the scheduler. For each object you can enter all kinds of constraints, like Moon phase, Moon distance from the object, minimum elevation, etc.

The image on the right was made in the early morning of May 21, 2017 and consists of 6 x 600s integrations for Luminance, and 3 x 600s each for R, G and B. The supernova is on the top right, indicated by a red marker. On the left is the comparison image made on September 5, 2013 under much more favourable seeing conditions.