NGC 6861

NGC 6861 is a lenticular galaxy located in the constellation Telescopium. It is the second-brightest object in the constellation. Unlike most lenticular galaxies, which tend to be mostly devoid of both gas and dust, NGC 6861 exhibits a thick obscuring ring of dust around the nucleus where star formation is occurring. The galaxy was discovered by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop, in 1826.^[3] NGC 6861 is interacting with NGC 6868, and it is predicted that they will eventually merge.^[4]

NGC 6861
NGC 6861
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation	Telescopium[1]
Right ascension	20h 07m 19.48s[2]
Declination	−48° 22′ 12.8″[2]
Redshift	0.009437[2]
Apparent magnitude (V)	11.0[1]
Characteristics
Type	SA0^-(s):[2]
Apparent size (V)	3′ × 2′[1]
Other designations
IC 4949[1]

References

1. "NGC 6861". dso-browser.com. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
2. "NED results for object NGC 6861". ned.ipac.caltech.edu. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
3. "Hubble Views 'Third Kind' of Galaxy". nasa.gov. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
4. Machacek, M. E.; O'Sullivan, E.; Randall, S. W.; Jones, C.; Forman, W. R. (2010). "The Mysterious Merger of NGC 6868 and NGC 6861 in the Telescopium Group". The Astrophysical Journal. 711 (2): 1316–1332. arXiv:1001.2567. Bibcode:2010ApJ...711.1316M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/711/2/1316. S2CID 119114153. Retrieved 31 January 2015.

External links

• Media related to NGC 6861 at Wikimedia Commons