NGC 4298
Galaxy in the constellation Coma Berenices
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
NGC 4298 is a flocculent[3][4][5][6] spiral galaxy located about 53 million light-years away[7] in the constellation Coma Berenices. The galaxy was discovered by astronomer William Herschel on April 8, 1784[8] and is a member of the Virgo Cluster.[9][10][11]
| NGC 4298 | |
|---|---|
Hubble Space Telescope image of NGC 4298 | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Coma Berenices |
| Right ascension | 12h 21m 32.7s[1] |
| Declination | 14° 36′ 22″[1] |
| Redshift | 0.003786[1] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 1135 km/s[1] |
| Distance | 53 Mly (16.4 Mpc)[1] |
| Group or cluster | Virgo Cluster |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 12.5[1] |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SA(rs)c[1] |
| Mass | 1.5×1010[2] M☉ |
| Size | ~55,000 ly (17 kpc) (estimated)[1] |
| Apparent size (V) | 3.30 x 1.24[1] |
| Other designations | |
| CGCG 99-24, IRAS 12190+1452, KCPG 332A, MCG 3-32-7, PGC 39950, UGC 7412, VCC 483[1] | |
NGC 4298 may harbor an intermediate-mass black hole with an estimated mass ranging from 20,000 (2×104 M☉) to 500,000 (5×105 M☉) solar masses.[12]
Interaction with NGC 4302
NGC 4298 appears to form a pair with[13][14][15] and appears to interact with NGC 4302.[13][2][14][16][15][17][18][4] Evidence for an interaction between the two galaxies are that NGC 4298 exhibits a lopsided, asymmetrical distribution of stars,[4][16][15] a tidal bridge that connects it to NGC 4302,[18][17][2] a prodigious rate of star formation[19] and an HI-tail. However, the tail is also the result of ram pressure.[3]
The two galaxies are separated from a projected distance of ~36,000 ly (11 kpc).[20][15][3]
Ram-pressure stripping
The presence of a truncated gas disc,[3][4] an asymmetric 6 cm polarized radio continuum distribution,[13] an HI-tail,[3] and asymmetries of gas in a similar direction as the ram pressure stripped gas in NGC 4302 suggest that NGC 4298 is undergoing ram pressure.[2]
