| Edge-on,
interacting, Spiral Galaxy
aka PGC 34697, MCG 2-29-20, Uppsala 6350 Integrated Visual Magnitude: 10.3 Apparent Diameter: 12.9' x 3.3' Mean surface brightness: 23.0 mag/arc-sec2 Minimum requirements to view: 3-inch scope under country skies |
Three bright galaxies in Leo form a famous trio. The two brightest are M65 and M66. They are visible in even the smallest amateur instruments from a suitably dark site. The third is NGC 3628. Although it wasn't observed by Messier, it is still an excellent target for telescopes large and small. Burnham's noted that they "form a noble group for the small telescope."
The M65, M66 and NGC 3628 trio. M65 is upper left. M66 upper right. The field is 1o x 1o. North is down and east is to the right.Although the faintest and least well known of the trio, NGC 3628 may be the most interesting in the eyepiece. Smaller scopes will show it as a very diffuse, oval hazy spot. Instruments 8-inches or larger will begin to reveal the dark lane that cuts across this edge-on spiral galaxy. In 16-inch and larger instruments this dark lane is quite pronounced. Unlike dark lanes in similar edge-on galaxies, this one is quite broad.
The field in a six-inch at 50x. North is down and east is to the right.
| Millennium
Star Atlas Vol II Chart 728
Sky Atlas 2000 Chart 13 Uranometria 2000 Vol I Chart 191 |
