NGC 2146

NGC 2146 (also known as the Dusty Hand Galaxy^[7]) is a barred spiral galaxy type SB(s)ab pec in the constellation Camelopardalis. The galaxy was discovered in 1876 by Friedrich August Theodor Winnecke.^[8]

ConstellationCamelopardalis

Right ascension06^h 18^m 37.710^s[1]

Declination+78° 21′ 25.27″^[1]

Redshift0.002999±0.000003^[2]

Quick facts Observation data (J2000 epoch), Constellation ...

NGC 2146
NGC 2146 imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation	Camelopardalis
Right ascension	06h 18m 37.710s[1]
Declination	+78° 21′ 25.27″[1]
Redshift	0.002999±0.000003[2]
Heliocentric radial velocity	899±1 km/s[2]
Galactocentric velocity	1,043±6 km/s[2]
Distance	63.76 ± 26.62 Mly (19.550 ± 8.161 Mpc)[2]
Apparent magnitude (V)	11.38±0.13[3][1]
Apparent magnitude (B)	10.59±0.13[3][1]
magnitude (J)	8.228±0.020[4]
magnitude (H)	7.416±0.021[4][1]
magnitude (K)	7.063±0.023[4][1]
Characteristics
Type	SB(s)ab pec; HII;LIRG[2][5]
Size	119,760 ly (36.72 kpc) (diameter; 25.0 B-mag arcsec−2)[2] 124,750 ly × 58,643 ly (38.25 kpc × 17.98 kpc) (diameter; "total" magnitude)[2]
Apparent size (V)	7.97142′ × 3.49228135′[6][1]
Other designations
4C +78.06, IRAS 06106+7822, UGC 3429, MCG +13-05-022, PGC 18797, CGCG 348-017[2]

Close

NGC 2146 has an isophotal diameter of 38.3 kiloparsecs (125,000 light-years), slightly larger than the Milky Way.^[2] The galaxy's most conspicuous feature is the dusty lanes of a spiral arm lying across the core of the galaxy as seen from Earth, the arm having been bent 45 degrees by a close encounter with a smaller galaxy, possibly NGC 2146A, about 0.8 billion years ago.^[8] This close encounter is credited with the relatively high rates of star formation that qualify NGC 2146 as a starburst galaxy.^[8]