2 Observations

In order to uncover a bar-like structure in the centre of M 74, long wavelength images are needed. Ideally, near-infrared imaging would be the best tool for this kind of study. We have therefore retrieved archived I, J and K band images of M 74.

Figure 1: I, J and K band greyscale plots of Messier 74.

Figure 2: I, J and K band contour plots of Messier 74.

We have made use of the Isaac Newton Group (ING) data archive to retrieve an I band image of M 74. The data was observed on the Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope (JKT) on 9th November 1999. Two I band images of 300 s each were observed. These images have been flat-fielded (using twilight sky flats) and combined to produce a single image of effective exposure time 600 s. We also used the NASA extragalactic database (NED) to retrieve J and K band images of M 74. These images were observed at the Calar Alto 2.2 m telescope using the MAGIC NICMOS3 instrument. For each waveband, M 74 was observed for a total integration of 9 min. These images have been flat fielded (using dome flats). The infrared images were originally presented in a paper by Möllenhoff & Heidt (2001).