Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 2208
NGC 2208 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Auriga, 271.0 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Auriga |
| Distance | 271.0 million light-years (83.09 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 181,000 light-years · 2.1 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −22.51 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 12.09 |
| Luminosity | 4.4 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 6h 22m 34.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | +51° 54′ 34″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 12.09. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 38° S. North of latitude 38° N 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 271 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 4,807.4 billion years.