Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 2407
NGC 2407 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Gemini, 391.5 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Gemini |
| Distance | 391.5 million light-years (120.04 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 166,900 light-years · 1.9 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −22.18 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 13.22 |
| Luminosity | 3.3 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 7h 31m 56.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | +18° 19′ 59″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 13.22. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 72° S. North of latitude 72° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in January, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 392 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 6,945.3 billion years.