Galaxy · Spiral
IC 945
IC 945 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Ursa Minor, 419.6 million light-years away.
| Type | Spiral |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Ursa Minor |
| Distance | 419.6 million light-years (128.64 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 168,800 light-years · 1.9 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.54 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 14.01 |
| Luminosity | 1.8 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 13h 47m 07.8s |
| Declination (J2000) | +72° 04′ 13″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 14.01. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 18° S. North of latitude 18° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in April, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 420 million years ago. At that time complex animals were spreading through the seas and over the land; there were no dinosaurs yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 7,442.8 billion years.