Galaxy · Spiral
NGC 1705
NGC 1705 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Pictor, 16.7 million light-years away.
| Type | Spiral |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Pictor |
| Distance | 16.7 million light-years (5.11 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 10,800 light-years · 0.12 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −16.50 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 12.04 |
| Luminosity | 0.017 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 4h 54m 13.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | −53° 21′ 41″ |
| Source | Updated Nearby Galaxy Catalog (Karachentsev et al. 2013) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 12.04. Visible from the whole Southern Hemisphere and north to latitude 37° N. South of latitude 37° 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 17 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 295.7 billion years.