NGC 3169 is a spiral galaxy about 75 million light years[3] away in the constellation Sextans. It has the morphological classification SA(s)a pec,[5] which indicates this is a pure, unbarred spiral galaxy with tightly-wound arms and peculiar features.[6] There is an asymmetrical spiral arm and an extended halo around the galaxy.[7] It is a member of the NGC 3166 Group of galaxies, which is a member of the Leo II Groups, a series of galaxies and galaxy clusters strung out from the right edge of the Virgo Supercluster.[8]
NGC 3169 | |
---|---|
Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
Constellation | Sextans |
Right ascension | 10h 14m 15.099s[1] |
Declination | +03° 27′ 58.03″[1] |
Redshift | +0.004113 ± 0.000017[2] |
Heliocentric radial velocity | +1,232[3] km/s |
Distance | 57 Mly (17.43 Mpc)[3] |
Apparent magnitude (V) | 10.3 |
Characteristics | |
Type | SA(s)a pec[4] |
Apparent size (V) | 4.2′ × 2.9′ |
Other designations | |
UGC 5525, PGC 29855[4] |
This is a LINER 2 galaxy that displays an extended emission of X-rays in the region of the nucleus.[9] A hard X-ray source at the center most likely indicates an active galactic nucleus.[10] The stellar population in the nucleus, and a ring at an angular radius of 6″, shows an age of only one billion years and is generally younger than the surrounding stellar population. This suggests that a burst of star formation took place in the nucleus roughly one billion years ago.[5]
NGC 3169 is located in close physical proximity to NGC 3166, and the two have an estimated separation of around 160 kly (50 kpc). Their interaction is creating a gravitational distortion that has left the disk of NGC 3166 warped.[11] Combined with NGC 3156, the three galaxies form a small group within the larger Leo 1 group. The three are embedded within an extended ring of neutral hydrogen that is centered on NGC 3169.[5]
Supernovae
Two supernovae have been observed in NGC 3169:
- SN 1984E (Type II-L, mag. 14.5) was codiscovered by Nataliya Metlova on 26 March 1984, and by Robert Evans on 29 March 1984.[12][13] The spectrum of this event at maximum light showed prominent Balmer lines that indicated the explosion occurred inside a dense shell of hydrogen surrounding the star. This shell was likely created by a strong stellar wind from the progenitor star.[14]
- SN 2003cg (type Ia, mag. 14.4) was codiscovered by Kōichi Itagaki and Ron Arbour on 21 March 2003.[15][16][17]
References
External links
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