NGC 5962
Galaxy in the constellation Serpens
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NGC 5962 is a spiral galaxy in the equatorial constellation of Serpens Caput. It was discovered by the Anglo-German astronomer William Herschel on March 21, 1784.[9] The NGC 5962 galaxy is located at a distance of 120 million light years and is receding with a heliocentric radial velocity of 1,957 km/s.[2] It is the brightest member of the eponymously-named NGC 5962 group, which overlaps with the nearby NGC 5970 group; the two groups may be gravitationally bound.[3]
| NGC 5962 | |
|---|---|
 NGC 5962, 32 inch Schulman Foundation telescope on Mt. Lemmon, AZ | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Serpens Caput |
| Right ascension | 15h 36m 31.681s[1] |
| Declination | +16° 36′ 27.93″[1] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 1,957 km/s[2] |
| Distance | 119.5 Mly (36.64 Mpc)[2] |
| Group or cluster | NGC 5962/5970 group[3] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 11.34[4] |
| Apparent magnitude (B) | 11.98[4] |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SAB(rs,nrl)c[5] |
| Apparent size (V) | 1.490′ × 1.073′[6] (NIR) |
| Other designations | |
| NGC 5962, UGC 9926, LEDA 55588, MCG +03-40-011, PGC 55588[7][8] | |
The morphological (shape) class of NGC 5962 in the infrared is SAB(rs,nrl)c. This notation indicates the galaxy has a bar structure around the nucleus (SAB), an inner pseudo-ring likely associated with the outer Lindblad resonance (rs), a ring-lens structure at the nucleus (nrl), and loosely-wound spiral arms (c).[5] In the optical band, this galaxy is classed as Hubble type SA(r)c,[10] displaying an inner ring with no visible bar. The galactic plane is inclined at an angle of 45°±2° to the line of sight from the Earth, giving it an oval profile with the major axis aligned along a position angle of 109°±4°.[11]
Along with a populated nucleus, it has a relatively large core, but a small central bulge, in which the spiral arms begin to unfurl. There is some evidence for a low level of nuclear activity, and it has been classed as a nuclear H II region galaxy.[10] Based on its emission of far ultraviolet radiation, the pseudo-ring structure is actively undergoing star formation.[12] The galaxy is forming stars at the rate of 6 M☉·yr−1.[13] There are two confirmed satellite galaxies; a third candidate proved to be too distant based on its redshift value.[14]
Two supernovae have been detected in this galaxy: SN 2016afa (type II, mag. 17.1)[15] was discovered February 12, 2016, and SN 2017ivu (type IIP, mag. 15.4)[16] was spotted December 11, 2017.[17]
