May 7-8th, 2011br/ Scope - LX50, 10quot;br/ Guide Scope - Celestron 80mm + SSAGbr/ Camera - Star Shoot Pro 2.0br/ Exposure - 9 x 240 sec. 9 brights, 9 darks, 5 flats and 5 dark flats.br/ Notes - Proper polar alignment makes a huge difference. Mount guided perfectly for whole night. Focus was spot on.br/ Subject: The Whirlpool Galaxy is a spiral galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici. It was the first galaxy to be classified as a spiral galaxy. It is estimated to be 23 plusmn; 4 million light-years from the Milky Way.