Galaxy · Spiral
Needle Galaxy (NGC 4565)
Needle Galaxy (NGC 4565) is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Coma Berenices, 38.8 million light-years away.
| Type | Spiral |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Coma Berenices |
| Distance | 38.8 million light-years (11.90 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 179,400 light-years · 2.1 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.70 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 8.68 |
| Luminosity | 2.1 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 12h 36m 20.9s |
| Declination (J2000) | +25° 59′ 17″ |
| Source | Compiled catalogue (NED, approximate values) |
In the sky
Too faint for the naked eye (magnitude 8.68); binoculars will find it. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 64° S. North of latitude 64° 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 39 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 688.5 billion years.