Galaxy · Lenticular
NGC 6279
NGC 6279 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Hercules, 337.6 million light-years away.
| Type | Lenticular |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Hercules |
| Distance | 337.6 million light-years (103.50 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 155,600 light-years · 1.8 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.80 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 13.27 |
| Luminosity | 2.3 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 16h 59m 01.4s |
| Declination (J2000) | +47° 14′ 14″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 13.27. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 43° S. North of latitude 43° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in June, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 338 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 5,988.3 billion years.