Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 5206
NGC 5206 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Centaurus, 11.3 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Centaurus |
| Distance | 11.3 million light-years (3.47 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 14,200 light-years · 0.16 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −17.20 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 10.50 |
| Luminosity | 0.033 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 13h 33m 43.9s |
| Declination (J2000) | −48° 09′ 04″ |
| Source | Updated Nearby Galaxy Catalog (Karachentsev et al. 2013) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 10.50. Visible from the whole Southern Hemisphere and north to latitude 42° N. South of latitude 42° S it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in April, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 11 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 200.8 billion years.