NGC 55

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NGC 55
ESO NGC 55 3point6-m copy.jpg
The irregular galaxy NGC 55, shot by the 3.6 meter telescope at ESO's La Silla observatory.
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation Sculptor[1]
Right ascension 00h 14m 53.6s[2]
Declination −39° 11′ 48″[2]
Redshift 129 ± 2 km/s[2]
Distance 7.2 ± 0.7 Mly
(2.21 ± 0.21 Mpc)[3][4] [a]
Type SB(s)m[2]
Apparent dimensions (V) 32′.4 × 5′.6[2]
Apparent magnitude (V) 7.87[5][6]
Other designations
PGC 1014,[2] Caldwell 72
See also: Galaxy, List of galaxies

NGC 55 is a Magellanic type barred spiral galaxy located about 7 million light-years away in the constellation Sculptor. Along with its neighbor NGC 300, it is one of the closest galaxies to the Local Group, probably lying between us and the Sculptor Group.

Nearby galaxies and group information

NGC 55 and the spiral galaxy NGC 300 have traditionally been identified as members of the Sculptor Group, a nearby group of galaxies in the constellation of the same name. However, recent distance measurements indicate that the two galaxies actually lie in the foreground.[7]

It is likely that NGC 55 and NGC 300 form a gravitationally bound pair.[4]

Visual appearance

The Webb Society Deep-Sky Observer's Handbook,[8] writes the following about NGC 55: "Nearly edge-on and appears asymmetrical with some signs of dust near the bulge, which is diffuse, broad and somewhat elongated with the south edge sharp; southeast of the bulge it is strongly curved and lined with 4 or 5 faint knots; north edge of the curve is sharp." Burnham calls it "one of the outstanding galaxies of the southern heavens", somewhat resembling a smaller version of the Large Magellanic Cloud.[9]

See also

  • NGC 4236 – a similar edge-on spiral galaxy
  • NGC 4631 – a similar edge-on spiral galaxy

Notes

  1. ^ average(6.9 ± 0.7,[3] 7.5 ± 1.1[4]) = ((6.9 + 7.5) / 2) ± ((0.72 + 1.12)0.5 / 2) = 7.2 ± 0.7

References

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External links

Coordinates: Sky map 00h 14m 53.6s, −39° 11′ 48″

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