Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 4227
NGC 4227 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Canes Venatici, 300.5 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Distance | 300.5 million light-years (92.14 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 155,400 light-years · 1.8 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −22.22 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 12.60 |
| Luminosity | 3.4 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 12h 16m 33.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | +33° 31′ 19″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 12.60. 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 March, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 301 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 5,331.0 billion years.