Hubble Photo: Galactic Star Factory
Written by The Night Sky Guy on July 23, 2012 – 12:33 pm -
Hubble Space Telescope image of NGC 4700 galaxy in Virgo. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA
First discovered by famed British amateur astronomer William Herschel back in 1786, NGC 4700 is a giant edge-on galaxy located some 50 to 60 million light years away in the northern Springtime constellation Virgo. Through backyard telescopes in dark locations it looks like a faint patch of cloud about 4.5 x 0.5 min in size, shining at about 12.5 magnitude. however the Hubble’s keen eye above the blurring effect of Earth’s atmosphere manages to tease out fine details within the galaxy.
Look carefully at the photo and you can make out many pink colored clouds scattered across the galaxy. Known as HII regions by astronomers, these pink structures are where stars are born. Our own Milky Way has many examples of such star factories – the most famous of which is the Orion nebula.
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By Robert on Jul 23, 2012 | Reply
All I have is a 8×40 binocular and tripod. Will I be able to see NGC 4700 or any such galaxys and if not what should I up grade to ( better binoculars or small teliscope).
By The Night Sky Guy on Jul 24, 2012 | Reply
Hi Robert, Galaxies like NGC 4700 really need large optics and dark skies with no light pollution to have a chance of finding them. They are just look like faint fuzzies even in large telescopes. I would say a 10 to 2 inch dobsonian would give great views but even an 8 inch under really dark skies would reveal NGC 4700 since its a moderately bright galaxy. But you will need some good star charts for the hunt.
Thanks for writing!
Andrew