M91 · galaxy

Messier 91

Messier 91 is a barred spiral galaxy that is found in the south of Coma Berenices.

RA12h 35m 26sDec+14° 29' 46"

Image: NASA, ESA, and J. Lee (California Institute of Technology). CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Identity & coordinates

Identification

Primary designation: M91
All designations: M91 · NGC 4548
Object type: Galaxy
Constellation: Coma Berenices
Best viewing: Spring

Coordinates & physical

Right ascension (J2000): 12h 35m 26s
Declination (J2000): +14° 29' 46"
Apparent magnitude (V): —
Distance: —
Redshift (z): 0.001621

III

Visibility tonight

The science

Messier 91 is a barred spiral galaxy that is found in the south of Coma Berenices. It is in the local supercluster and is part of the Virgo Cluster of galaxies. It is about 63 million light-years away from our galaxy. It was the last of a group of eight "nebulae" – the term 'galaxy' only coming into use for these objects once it was realized in the 20th century that they were extragalactic – discovered by Charles Messier in 1781. It is the faintest object in the Messier catalog, with an apparent magnitude of 10.2.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia · CC-BY-SA-4.0