Ten supernovae and counting

A softly glowing blue-white spiral galaxy sits centered in the frame, its curved arms wrapped tightly around a bright core. Pink patches are scattered along the arms where they wind outward. The background is filled with countless faint stars, with a few brighter, colorful ones scattered nearby.

Tony Hallas from Foresthill, California

The Fireworks Galaxy (NGC 6946), a face-on spiral about 25 million light-years away straddling Cepheus and Cygnus, has produced ten known supernovae since 1917 — the highest rate of any galaxy on record. The imager gathered data in HαRGB filters over four nights with a 14-inch reflector and a Player One Zeus camera.