Galaxy · Irregular
KK 138
KK 138 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Coma Berenices, 20.5 million light-years away.
| Type | Irregular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Coma Berenices |
| Distance | 20.5 million light-years (6.30 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 2,479 light-years · 0.028 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −11.00 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 18.00 |
| Luminosity | 1.1 × 10⁻⁴ × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 12h 21m 58.4s |
| Declination (J2000) | +28° 14′ 34″ |
| Source | Updated Nearby Galaxy Catalog (Karachentsev et al. 2013) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 18.00. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 62° S. North of latitude 62° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in March, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 21 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 364.5 billion years.