File:NGC_3079.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Q644518
Sign in to saveAlso known as New General Catalogue 3079
barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Ursa Major
Key facts
- Constellation
- Ursa Major
- Right ascension
- 10 01 57.9268
- Declination
- +55 ° 40 ′ 46.926 ″
- Redshift
- 1116 ± 1 km/ s
- Distance
- 50 Mly
- Group or cluster
- NGC 3079 Group (LGG 188)
- Type
- SB(s)c
- Size
- ~135,600 ly (41.58 kpc ) (estimated)
- Apparent size v
- 7.9 ′ × 1.4 ′
via Wikipedia infobox
~2 min read
Encyclopedic overview
NGC 3079 is a barred spiral galaxy about 50 million light-years away, and located in the constellation Ursa Major. The galaxy was discovered by German-British astronomer William Herschel on 1 April 1790.
The SIMBAD database lists NGC 3079 as a Seyfert II Galaxy, i.e. it has a quasar-like nucleus with very high surface brightnesses whose spectra reveal strong, high-ionisation emission lines, but unlike quasars, the host galaxy is clearly detectable.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Q644518” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.