DwarfVision Galaxy Challenge - Southern Hemisphere Edition!
For all Galactic hunters and Dwarfer's living under southern Autumn skies, here is an updated list of challenge targets just for you!
The start of the list is a set of targets that both northern and southern observers share, though for those in the south, they'll be gracing the skies of the north, rather than the south. These are true classics of "Galaxy Season" visible across the globe:
Sombrero Galaxy - M104 (NGC 4594): A stunning edge-on marvel in Virgo.
Antennae Galaxies - NGC 4038 & 4039: Two galaxies in a spectacular cosmic collision in Corvus.
Markarian's Chain (M84, M86, "The Eyes," etc.): That incredible river of galaxies flowing through the heart of the Virgo Cluster.
Leo Triplet (M65, M66, NGC 3628): Leo's famous trio, best caught earlier in Southern Autumn evenings.
Virgo's Core (Area 1: M59, M60, NGC 4647): More galactic heavyweights in Virgo.
M99 (The Coma Pinwheel): A beautiful spiral in Coma Berenices.
M100 (The Mirror Galaxy): Another grand spiral in Coma Berenices.
Virgo's Core (Area 2: M90, IC 3583, etc.): Delving deeper into Virgo's riches.
C38 (NGC 4565) The Needle Galaxy: A superb edge-on in Coma Berenices, a bit lower in the north for us but worth the effort!
M64 (Black Eye Galaxy): (Coma Berenices) Its famous dark dust lane makes it a standout in the both the southern and northern sky.
NGC 4631 (Whale) & NGC 4656/57 (Hockey Stick): (Canes Venatici) This pair will be lower towards your northern horizon – a good test of your DWARF's capabilities!
Now, let's turn our gaze to some absolute showpieces that truly shine from the Southern Hemisphere this time of year – targets that those in the north can only dream of seeing so well!
Centaurus A (NGC 5128): An awe-inspiring peculiar galaxy in Centaurus, blazing with activity and bisected by a dramatic dust lane. An absolute must-image!
M83 (Southern Pinwheel Galaxy): Located in Hydra, this is one of the brightest and most beautiful barred spiral galaxies in the entire sky. Its arms are packed with star formation.
NGC 4945: A magnificent, large edge-on spiral galaxy in Centaurus, often considered a southern sky counterpart to the Sombrero.
NGC 1399: (Fornax Cluster) A giant elliptical galaxy considered one of the central members of the Fornax Cluster, surrounded by a rich system of globular clusters.
NGC 1365 (Great Barred Spiral Galaxy): A jewel of the Fornax Cluster, this galaxy boasts an incredibly prominent bar and graceful spiral arms. It will be rising later in your autumn nights, heralding its season.
Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC): (Dorado/Mensa) The largest satellite galaxy of the Milky Way! A stunning naked-eye object from dark southern skies, it’s a sprawling canvas filled with countless nebulae (like the Tarantula Nebula!), star clusters, and stellar associations for your DWARF to explore.
Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC / NGC 292): (Tucana) The LMC's smaller companion, this irregular dwarf galaxy, is another naked-eye treasure. It is packed with its star clusters and nebulae and offers a different exploration scale.
NGC 1313 (Topsy Turvy Galaxy): This intriguing interacting barred spiral in Reticulum is circumpolar or very well-placed for long imaging sessions from Wellington.
NGC 1566 (Spanish Dancer Galaxy): A gorgeous face-on spiral in Dorado, also circumpolar or high in the sky, with beautifully defined arms.
Galaxy Challenge Rules - Southern Hemisphere Edition!
To keep things fun and fair for the DwarfVision Galaxy Challenge (Southern Hemisphere Autumn/Fall Edition), here are the simple guidelines:
Scope It Out: This challenge is exclusively for captures made with DWARF II or DWARF 3 smart telescopes. Let's see what these excellent little scopes can do!
Seasonal Captures: Images should be taken during the Southern Hemisphere's autumn/winter period of 2025 (roughly May and June) to align with prime galaxy viewing time for these targets.
Tag Your Treasures: When you post your incredible galaxy shots on Facebook (especially in the DWARF groups!), please use the hashtag
#DwarfVisionGalaxyChallenge. This is how we'll find your entries, admire them, and include them in the leaderboard and potential features on the DwarfVision site and newsletter!
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