Galaxy · Spiral
NGC 917
NGC 917 is a galaxy in the direction of the constellation Triangulum, 251.0 million light-years away.
| Type | Spiral |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Triangulum |
| Distance | 251.0 million light-years (76.97 Mpc) |
| Diameter | 146,700 light-years · 1.7 × the Milky Way |
| Absolute magnitude | magnitude −21.99 |
| Apparent magnitude | magnitude 12.44 |
| Luminosity | 2.7 × the Milky Way |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 2h 26m 07.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | +31° 54′ 44″ |
| Source | 2MASS Redshift Survey (Huchra et al. 2012) |
In the sky
A telescope is needed to see it: its apparent magnitude is 12.44. Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 58° S. North of latitude 58° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in October, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 251 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 4,453.3 billion years.