Galaxy · Spiral
NGC 5939
NGC 5939 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Ursa Minor, 311.6 million light-years away.
| Type | Spiral |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Ursa Minor |
| Distance | 311.6 million light-years (95.53 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 117,000 light-years · 1.3 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.89 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 13.01 |
| Luminosity | 2.5 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 15h 24m 46.0s |
| Declination (J2000) | +68° 43′ 50″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 13.01. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 21° S. North of latitude 21° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in May, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 312 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 5,527.2 billion years.