NGC 4586 is a
spiral galaxy
Spiral galaxies form a galaxy morphological classification, class of galaxy originally described by Edwin Hubble in his 1936 work ''The Realm of the Nebulae'' located about 50 million
light-year
A light-year, alternatively spelled light year (ly or lyr), is a unit of length used to express astronomical distances and is equal to exactly , which is approximately 9.46 trillion km or 5.88 trillion mi. As defined by the International Astr ...
s away in the constellation
Virgo
Virgo may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Virgo (film), a 1970 Egyptian film
* Virgo (character), several Marvel Comics characters
* Virgo Asmita, a character in the manga ''Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas''
* ''Virgo'' (album), by Virgo Four, ...
. The galaxy was discovered by astronomer
William Herschel
Frederick William Herschel ( ; ; 15 November 1738 – 25 August 1822) was a German-British astronomer and composer. He frequently collaborated with his younger sister and fellow astronomer Caroline Herschel. Born in the Electorate of Hanover ...
on February 2, 1786. Although listed in the Virgo Cluster Catalog, NGC 4586 is considered to be a member of the
Virgo II Groups
The Virgo II Groups, also known as the Virgo II Cloud, Virgo Southern Extension, or the Virgo S Cloud, are a series of at least 100 galactic clusters and individual galaxies stretching approximately off the southern edge of the Virgo Supercluste ...
which form a southern extension of the
Virgo cluster
The Virgo Cluster is a cluster of galaxies whose center is 53.8 ± 0.3 Mly (16.5 ± 0.1 Mpc) away in the Virgo constellation. Comprising approximately 1,300 (and possibly up to 2,000) member galaxies, the cluster forms the heart of the larger ...
. NGC 4586 is currently in the process of infalling into the
Virgo Cluster
The Virgo Cluster is a cluster of galaxies whose center is 53.8 ± 0.3 Mly (16.5 ± 0.1 Mpc) away in the Virgo constellation. Comprising approximately 1,300 (and possibly up to 2,000) member galaxies, the cluster forms the heart of the larger ...
and is predicted to enter the cluster in about 500 million years.
Boxy/Peanut bulge
NGC 4586 has a boxy or peanut-shaped bulge. The bulge has been interpreted to be a bar viewed edge-on.
See also
*
List of NGC objects (4001–5000)
This is a list of NGC objects 4001–5000 from the New General Catalogue (NGC). The astronomical catalogue is composed mainly of star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies. Other objects in the catalogue can be found in the other subpages of the list of ...
*
NGC 4469
*
NGC 4013
NGC 4013 is an edge-on barred spiral galaxy about 1 E23 m, 55 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. The disk of NGC 4013 shows a distinct "peanut"-shaped bulge in long exposure photographs that N-body computer simulations sugg ...
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:NGC 4586
Virgo (constellation)
Unbarred spiral galaxies
4586
42241
7804
Astronomical objects discovered in 1786
Discoveries by William Herschel