NGC 5195
Irregular Galaxy NGC 5195
(= H I.186)
type Pec,
Companion of M51
Right Ascension | 13 : 30.0 (h:m) |
---|---|
Declination | +47 : 16 (deg:m) |
Distance | 37000 (kly) |
Visual Brightness | 9.6 (mag) |
Apparent Dimension | 6.4×4.6 (arc min) |
NGC 5195, the companion of M51, was discovered
by Pierre Mechain on March 20, 1781. It was assigned an own number by
William Herschel: H I.186.
This galaxy has undergone a close encounter with the larger and more massive
M51 several million years ago. During this encounter, it has been significantly
distorted from an original disk to irregular shape; the encounter has also
significantly enhanced the spiral structure of larger M51.
It is thought that NGC 5195 has passed M51 roughly along our line of sight and
is now behind its large neighbor.
NGC 5195 is the smaller, distorted galaxy in the lower part of our image.
This image has been cropped from a larger
of both interacting galaxies M51 and NGC 5195.
NGC 5195 can be seen in many images of M51.
Last Modification: 29 Mar 1998, 12:35 MET