Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 2291
NGC 2291 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Gemini, 242.5 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Gemini |
| Distance | 242.5 million light-years (74.36 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 129,800 light-years · 1.5 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.07 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 13.29 |
| Luminosity | 1.2 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 6h 50m 58.6s |
| Declination (J2000) | +33° 31′ 31″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 13.29. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 56° S. North of latitude 56° 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 243 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 4,302.3 billion years.