Ultra Deep Centaurus A (NGC 5128)

The above comparison shows that with sufficient exposure, a modern imaging device
and processing techniques a small telescope today can go as deep (or deeper) as a 1.2m fast
astrograph of 25yrs ago using photographic plates. The photo on the left was a 70min exposure
with the UK Schmidt telescope at the Anglo Australian Observatory at Siding Spring in Australia
done on a sensitive photographic plate and enhanced by Dr David Malin using his revolutionary image
amplification technique. The image on the right is a software enhanced 15hr exposure through a 6"
F7.5 Apochromat using an FLI ProLine 11002 CCD camera.

The extreme galaxy extensions and intervening Galactic Cirrus dust revealed in both images
are fainter than 27mag/squ arc sec which is about 100X fainter than the natural sky background!

See the full colour Ultra Deep image with the 6" Starfire here:
http://www.pbase.com/strongmanmike2002/image/110446969/original