NGC 1217
Galaxy in the constellation Fornax
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
NGC 1217 is a spiral galaxy in the constellation of Fornax. Its velocity with respect to the cosmic microwave background is 6,282±15 km/s, which corresponds to a Hubble distance of 302.2 ± 21.2 Mly (92.66 ± 6.49 Mpc).[1] Additionally, one non-redshift measurement provides a much closer distance estimate of 199.93 Mly (61.300 Mpc).[2] It was discovered by British astronomer John Herschel on 23 October 1835.[3]
| NGC 1217 | |
|---|---|
NGC 1217 (center) imaged by Legacy Surveys. The galaxy above is MCG -07-07-004. | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Fornax |
| Right ascension | 03h 06m 06.0421s[1] |
| Declination | −39° 02′ 10.833″[1] |
| Redshift | 0.021358±0.0000400[1] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 6,403±12 km/s[1] |
| Distance | 199.93 Mly (61.300 Mpc)[1] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 13.64[1] |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | (R)SA(r)a[1] |
| Apparent size (V) | 1.8′ × 1.3′[1] |
| Other designations | |
| ESO 300- G 010, IRAS 03041-3913, 2MASX J03060599-3902111, MCG -07-07-003, PGC 11641[1] | |
NGC 1217 has an active galactic nucleus, i.e. it has a compact region at the center of a galaxy that emits a significant amount of energy across the electromagnetic spectrum, with characteristics indicating that this luminosity is not produced by the stars.[4][5]
NGC 1217 is also a Seyfert II galaxy, i.e. it has a quasar-like nucleus with very high surface brightnesses whose spectra reveal strong, high-ionisation emission lines, but unlike quasars, the host galaxy is clearly detectable.[5][6] It is also a LINER galaxy, i.e. a galaxy whose nucleus has an emission spectrum characterized by broad lines of weakly ionized atoms.[1]
