Sunflower Galaxy.html |
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| Sunflower Galaxy | |
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| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Right ascension | 13h 15m 49.3s1 |
| Declination | +42° 01′ 45″1 |
| Redshift | 504 km/s1 |
| Distance | 37 Mly2 |
| Type | SA(rs)bc1 |
| Apparent dimensions (V) | 12′.6 × 7′.21 |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 9.31 |
| Other designations | |
| M63, NGC 5055, UGC 8334, PGC 461531 | |
| See also: Galaxy, List of galaxies | |
The Sunflower Galaxy (also known as Messier 63, M63, or NGC 5055) is an unbarred spiral galaxy in the Canes Venatici constellation. It is a flocculent spiral galaxy, consisting of a central disc surrounded by many short spiral arm segments. The Sunflower Galaxy is part of the M51 Group, a group of galaxies that also includes the Whirlpool Galaxy (M51).
History
The Sunflower Galaxy was discovered by Pierre Méchain on June 14, 1779.3 The galaxy was then listed by Charles Messier as object 63 in the Messier Catalogue.
In the mid-1800s, Lord Rosse identified spiral structure within the galaxy, making this one of the first galaxies in which such structure was identified.3
External links
- Sunflower Galaxy @ SEDS Messier pages
- The Sunflower Galaxy on WikiSky: DSS2, SDSS, IRAS, Hydrogen α, X-Ray, Astrophoto, Sky Map, Articles and images
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database". Results for NGC 5055. Retrieved on 2006-10-10.
- ^ Frommert, Hartmut & Kronberg, Christine (2002). "Messier Object 63". Retrieved Dec. 26, 2006
- ^ a b K. G. Jones (1991). Messier's Nebulae and Star Clusters, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-37079-5.
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