Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 2803
NGC 2803 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Cancer, 414.9 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Cancer |
| Distance | 414.9 million light-years (127.21 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 205,900 light-years · 2.4 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −22.00 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 13.52 |
| Luminosity | 2.8 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 9h 16m 43.9s |
| Declination (J2000) | +18° 57′ 17″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 13.52. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 71° S. North of latitude 71° 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 415 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 7,360.1 billion years.