Galaxy · Spiral
NGC 5547
NGC 5547 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Ursa Minor, 545.1 million light-years away.
| Type | Spiral (estimated) |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Ursa Minor |
| Distance | 545.1 million light-years (167.14 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 138,100 light-years · 1.6 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.90 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 14.22 |
| Luminosity | 2.5 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 14h 09m 45.5s |
| Declination (J2000) | +78° 36′ 04″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 14.22. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 11° S. North of latitude 11° N it never sets.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 545 million years ago. At that time the Earth held only single-celled organisms and the first multicellular life. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 9,670.4 billion years.