Astronomy:NGC 5253

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Short description: Irregular galaxy in the M83 group of galaxies
NGC 5253
A Peculiar Compact Blue Dwarf Galaxy.jpg
NGC 5253 is one of the nearest of the known Blue Compact Dwarf (BCD) galaxies[1]
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
ConstellationCentaurus
Right ascension 13h 39m 55.9631s[2]
Declination−31° 38′ 24.388″[2]
Redshift407 ± 3 km/s[2]
Distance10.9 ± 0.6 Mly (3.33 ± 0.17 Mpc)[3]
Apparent magnitude (V)10.9[2]
Characteristics
TypeIm pec[2]
Apparent size (V)5.0 × 1.9[2]
Other designations
UGCA 369,[2] PGC 48334,[2] Haro 10[2]

NGC 5253 is an irregular galaxy in the constellation Centaurus. It was discovered by William Herschel on 15 March 1787.[4]

Properties

NGC 5253 is located within the M83 Subgroup of the Centaurus A/M83 Group, a relatively nearby galaxy group that includes the radio galaxy Centaurus A and the spiral galaxy M83 (the Southern Pinwheel Galaxy). NGC 5253 is considered a dwarf starburst galaxy[5] and also a blue compact galaxy.[6]

Two supernovae have been observed in NGC 5253. SN 1895B (type unknown, mag. 8) was discovered on 7 July 1895.[7] Supernova SN 1972E, the second-brightest recent supernova visible from Earth (peak visual magnitude of 8.5, fainter only than SN 1987A in the 20th century), was discovered on 6 May 1972.[8][9]

Contents

NGC 5253 contains a giant dust cloud hiding a cluster (believed to be a super star cluster) of more than one million stars, among them up to 7,000 O-type stars. The cluster is 3 million years old and has a total luminosity of more than one billion suns. It is the site of efficient star formation, with a rate at least 10 times higher than comparable regions in the Milky Way.[10][11]

References

  1. "A Peculiar Compact Blue Dwarf Galaxy". ESA/Hubble Picture of the Week. http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/potw1248a/. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 "NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database". Results for NGC 5253. http://nedwww.ipac.caltech.edu/. 
  3. Ferrarese, Laura; Ford, Holland C.; Huchra, John; Kennicutt, Robert C., Jr. et al. (2000). "A Database of Cepheid Distance Moduli and Tip of the Red Giant Branch, Globular Cluster Luminosity Function, Planetary Nebula Luminosity Function, and Surface Brightness Fluctuation Data Useful for Distance Determinations". The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series 128 (2): 431–459. doi:10.1086/313391. Bibcode2000ApJS..128..431F. 
  4. The scientific papers of Sir William Herschel by J. L. E. Dreyer. Royal Astronomical Society London 1912.
  5. Jordan Zastrow; M.S. Oey; Sylvain Veilleux; Michael McDonald; Crystal L. Martin (2011). "An Ionization Cone in the Dwarf Starburst Galaxy NGC 5253". The Astrophysical Journal 741 (1): (page needed). doi:10.1088/2041-8205/741/1/L17. Bibcode2011ApJ...741L..17Z. 
  6. "Hubble Spots a Peculiar Compact Blue Dwarf Galaxy". NASA. 30 November 2012. http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/science/ngc5253.html. 
  7. Kowal, C. T.; Sargent, W. L. W. (Nov 1971). "Supernovae discovered since 1885". Astronomical Journal 76: 756–764. doi:10.1086/111193. Bibcode1971AJ.....76..756K. 
  8. I. D. Karachentsev; M. E. Sharina; A. E. Dolphin; E. K. Grebel et al. (2002). "New distances to galaxies in the Centaurus A group". Astronomy and Astrophysics 385 (1): 21–31. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20020042. Bibcode2002A&A...385...21K. 
  9. I. D. Karachentsev (2005). "The Local Group and Other Neighboring Galaxy Groups". Astronomical Journal 129 (1): 178–188. doi:10.1086/426368. Bibcode2005AJ....129..178K. 
  10. Stuart Wolpert (March 18, 2015). "More than a million stars are forming in a mysterious dusty gas cloud in a nearby galaxy" (Press release). UCLA. Archived from the original on March 19, 2015.
  11. J. L. Turner; S. C. Beck; D. J. Benford; S. M. Consiglio et al. (2015). "Highly efficient star formation in NGC 5253 possibly from stream-fed accretion.". Nature 519 (7543): 331–333. doi:10.1038/nature14218. PMID 25788096. Bibcode2015Natur.519..331T. 

External links