NGC 2997 · galaxy

NGC 2997

NGC 2997 is a face-on unbarred spiral galaxy about 40 million light-years away in the faint southern constellation of Antlia.

RA09h 45m 38sDec−31° 11' 27"

Image: NASA / GSFC. Source: GSFC via images.nasa.gov.

Identity & coordinates

Identification

Primary designation: NGC 2997
All designations: NGC 2997
Object type: Galaxy
Constellation: Ant
Best viewing: Spring

Coordinates & physical

Right ascension (J2000): 09h 45m 38s
Declination (J2000): −31° 11' 27"
Apparent magnitude (V): —
Distance: —
Redshift (z): 0.003633

III

Visibility tonight

The science

NGC 2997 is a face-on unbarred spiral galaxy about 40 million light-years away in the faint southern constellation of Antlia. It was discovered March 4, 1793 by German-born astronomer William Herschel. J. L. E. Dreyer described it as, "a remarkable object, very faint, very large, very gradually then very suddenly bright middle and 4 arcsec nucleus. This is the brightest galaxy of the NGC 2997 group of galaxies, and was featured on the cover of the first edition of Galactic Dynamics by James Binney and Scott Tremaine.

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