Galaxy · Spiral
NGC 5909
NGC 5909 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Ursa Minor, 328.6 million light-years away.
| Type | Spiral |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Ursa Minor |
| Distance | 328.6 million light-years (100.74 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 142,300 light-years · 1.6 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.72 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 13.30 |
| Luminosity | 2.1 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 15h 11m 28.3s |
| Declination (J2000) | +75° 23′ 02″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 13.30. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 15° S. North of latitude 15° N it never sets.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 329 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 5,828.6 billion years.