Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 2720
NGC 2720 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Cancer, 414.5 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Cancer |
| Distance | 414.5 million light-years (127.07 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 177,000 light-years · 2 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −22.76 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 12.76 |
| Luminosity | 5.5 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 8h 59m 08.1s |
| Declination (J2000) | +11° 08′ 57″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 12.76. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 79° S. North of latitude 79° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in February, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 414 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 7,352.0 billion years.