Seyfert's Sextet is a
group of galaxies
A galaxy group or group of galaxies (GrG) is an aggregation of galaxies comprising about 50 or fewer gravitationally bound members, each at least as luminous as the Milky Way (about 1010 times the luminosity of the Sun); collections of galaxies ...
about
190 million light-years away
[ ] in the
constellation Serpens
Serpens ( grc, , , the Serpent) is a constellation in the northern celestial hemisphere. One of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy, it remains one of the 88 modern constellations designated by the International ...
. The group appears to contain six members, but one of the galaxies,
NGC 6027d, is a background object and another "galaxy,"
NGC 6027e, is actually a part of the tail from galaxy
NGC 6027. The
gravitational interaction
In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stron ...
among these galaxies should continue for hundreds of millions of years. Ultimately, the galaxies will merge to form a single giant
elliptical galaxy
An elliptical galaxy is a type of galaxy with an approximately ellipsoidal shape and a smooth, nearly featureless image. They are one of the four main classes of galaxy described by Edwin Hubble in his Hubble sequence and 1936 work ''The Real ...
.
Discovery
The group was discovered by
Carl Keenan Seyfert using photographic plates made at the
Barnard Observatory
Barnard Observatory is an academic building at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Mississippi. Completed as an observatory in 1859, it was part of the astronomy focus that chancellor Frederick A.P. Barnard had for the school. Due to the o ...
of
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...
. When these results were first published in 1951, this group was the most compact group ever identified.
Members
See also
*
Wild's Triplet
*
Zwicky's Triplet
*
Robert's Quartet
Robert's Quartet is a compact galaxy group approximately 160 million light-years away in the constellation Phoenix. It is a family of four very different galaxies whose proximity to each other has caused the creation of about 200 star-forming ...
*
Stephan's Quintet and
NGC 7331 Group ( Also known as the ''Deer Lick Group'', about half a degree northeast of Stephan's Quintet)
*
Copeland Septet
The Copeland Septet (also Copeland's Septet, Hickson Compact Group 57) is a group of galaxies in the constellation Leo that includes NGC 3748, NGC 3754, NGC 3750, NGC 3751, NGC 3745, NGC 3753 and NGC 3746. The group was discovered by Brit ...
References
External links
ASAHI Net Free Address Service: Seyfert's Sextet (Galaxy Group in Serpens)*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seyfert's Sextet
79
10116
Serpens (constellation)