Galaxy · Irregular
ESO 121-020
ESO 121-020 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Pictor, 19.7 million light-years away.
| Type | Irregular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Pictor |
| Distance | 19.7 million light-years (6.05 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 5,479 light-years · 0.063 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −14.40 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 14.51 |
| Luminosity | 0.0025 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 6h 15m 54.5s |
| Declination (J2000) | −57° 43′ 35″ |
| Source | Updated Nearby Galaxy Catalog (Karachentsev et al. 2013) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 14.51. Visible from the whole Southern Hemisphere and north to latitude 32° N. South of latitude 32° S it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in December, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 20 million years ago. At that time the dinosaurs were gone and mammals were diversifying; there was no human lineage yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 350.0 billion years.