Circinus Galaxy
Galaxy in the constellation Circinus / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Circinus Galaxy (ESO 97-G13) is a Seyfert galaxy[2] in the constellation of Circinus. It is located 4 degrees below the Galactic plane, and, at a distance of 4.0 Mpc (13 Mly), is one of the closest major galaxies to the Milky Way.[3] The galaxy is undergoing tumultuous changes, as rings of gas are likely being ejected from the galaxy.[4] Its outermost ring is 1400 light-years across while the inner ring is 260 light-years across.[citation needed] Although the Circinus galaxy can be seen using a small telescope, it was not noticed until 1977[5] because it lies close to the plane of the Milky Way and is obscured by galactic dust. The Circinus Galaxy is a Type II Seyfert galaxy and is one of the closest known active galaxies to the Milky Way, though it is probably slightly farther away than Centaurus A.
Circinus Galaxy | |
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Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
Constellation | Circinus |
Right ascension | 14h 13m 9.9s[1] |
Declination | −65° 20′ 21″[1] |
Redshift | 426 ± 25 km/s |
Apparent magnitude (V) | 12.1[1] |
Characteristics | |
Type | SA(s)b[1] |
Size | 14.85 kpc × 6.09 kpc (48,430 ly × 19,860 ly) (diameter; 2MASS K-band total isophote)[1][lower-alpha 1] 10.38 kpc × 5.19 kpc (33,855 ly × 16,928 ly) (diameter; ESO 90% total B-band)[1][lower-alpha 1] |
Apparent size (V) | 6.9′ × 3.0′[1] |
Other designations | |
ESO 97-G13,[1] LEDA 50779 |
Circinus Galaxy produced supernova SN 1996cr, which was identified over a decade after it exploded. This supernova event was first observed during 2001 as a bright, variable object in a Chandra X-ray Observatory image, but it was not confirmed as a supernova until years later.
The Circinus Galaxy is one of twelve large galaxies in the "Council of Giants" surrounding the Local Group in the Local Sheet.[6] One object is possibly a satellite of the Circinus Galaxy, known as HIZOA J1353-58. HIZOA J1353-58 was discovered in a survey of neutral hydrogen (H I) and is located within the Zone of Avoidance.[7]
NuSTAR detected a ULX at the edge of this galaxy, a Black hole about 100 times the mass of the Sun. [8][9]