Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 4627
NGC 4627 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Canes Venatici, 23.8 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Distance | 23.8 million light-years (7.30 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 12,700 light-years · 0.15 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −17.00 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 12.32 |
| Luminosity | 0.028 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 12h 41m 59.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | +32° 34′ 25″ |
| Source | Updated Nearby Galaxy Catalog (Karachentsev et al. 2013) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 12.32. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 57° S. North of latitude 57° 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 24 million years ago. At that time the dinosaurs were gone and mammals were diversifying; there was no human lineage yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 422.4 billion years.