NGC 3628
| NGC 3628 | |
|---|---|
 close up of NGC 3628 | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Leo |
| Right ascension | 11h 20m 17.0s[1] |
| Declination | +13° 35′ 23″[1] |
| Redshift | 843 ± 1 km/s[1] |
| Distance | 35 Mly (11 Mpc)[2] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 9.5[2] |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SAb pec[1] |
| Size | 32.02 kpc (104,400 ly)[1] |
| Apparent size (V) | 14′ × 3.6′[2] |
| Notable features | Galaxy in the Leo Triplet |
| Other designations | |
| UGC 6350, PGC 34697, VV 308b[1] | |
NGC 3628, also known as the Hamburger Galaxy[3] or Sarah's Galaxy,[4][5][6][7][8] is an unbarred spiral galaxy about 35 million light-years away in the constellation Leo. It was discovered by William Herschel in 1784. It has an approximately 300,000 light-years long tidal tail. Along with M65 and M66, NGC 3628 forms the Leo Triplet, a small group of galaxies. Its most conspicuous feature is the broad and obscuring band of dust located along the outer edge of its spiral arms, effectively transecting the galaxy to the view from Earth.
Due to the presence of an x-shaped bulge,[9] visible in multiple wavelengths, it has been argued that NGC 3628 is instead a barred spiral galaxy with the bar seen end-on.[10] Simulations have shown that bars often form in disk galaxies during interactions and mergers, and NGC 3628 is known to be interacting with its two large neighbors.
The name "Hamburger Galaxy" is a reference to its shape resembling a hamburger, while the name "Sarah's Galaxy" is thought to refer to poet Sarah Williams (1837–1868),[11] most famous for the poem "The Old Astronomer:"
Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light;
I have loved the stars too truly to be fearful of the night.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f "NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database". Results for NGC 3628. Retrieved 2006-10-24.
- ^ a b c Messier Catalogue Description, NGC 3628 page at SEDS.
- ^ Sen, Nina (2013-07-28). "Chomp! Hamburger Galaxy Feeds Stargazer's Cosmic Appetite (Photo)". Space.com. Retrieved 2015-06-14.
- ^ "Inside the March 2015 Issue - Sky & Telescope". Sky & Telescope. skyandtelescope.com. 2015-01-16. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
- ^ "NGC 3628 (Sarah's Galaxy)". annesastronomynews.com. 2012-03-04. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
- ^ "Astronomers Do It In The Dark - NGC 3628 - the 3rd Galaxy in the Leo Triplet (reprocessed) - Spiral Galaxies - Typically younger galaxies with Spiral Arms of star formation". astronomersdoitinthedark.com. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
- ^ "The Delight of Sarah's Galaxy | Parables of the Sky Blog". rolandlinda3.wordpress.com. Archived from the original on 2015-10-15. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
- ^ "Astronomy Picture of the Month | 2011 | The Sarah's's Galaxy". iac.es. Retrieved 2015-10-13.
- ^ Bogdan C. Ciambur; Alister W. Graham (2016), Quantifying the (X/peanut)-shaped structure in edge-on disc galaxies: length, strength, and nested peanuts
- ^ "Calvin College". Archived from the original on 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-10-28.
- ^ "Scotland's Sky in April 2022". Astronomical Society of Edinburgh. March 31, 2022.
- ^ Williams, Sarah (1868). "The Old Astronomer". Twilight Hours. Strahan & Co. p. 69.
External links
[edit]
Media related to NGC 3628 at Wikimedia Commons- SEDS: Spiral Galaxy NGC 3628
- NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day: The Tidal Tail of NGC 3628 (27 July 2007)
- Szymanek, Nik; Gray, Meghan. "M65 – Spiral Galaxy". Deep Sky Videos. Brady Haran.
