Galaxy
Pinwheel Galaxy
Spiral galaxy · M101 · NGC 5457
Spiral galaxy in Ursa Major
Photo: Credit: Image: European Space Agency & NASA Acknowledgements: Project Investigators fo · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
The Pinwheel Galaxy is a face-on, counterclockwise intermediate spiral galaxy located 21 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Ursa Major. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781 and was communicated that year to Charles Messier, who verified its position for inclusion in the Messier Catalogue as one of its final entries.
Description from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
In your sky
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Key facts
Distance
~19.1–22.4 million light-years
Apparent mag.
+7.9
Apparent size
28.8′ × 26.9′
Best seen with
Binoculars
Catalogue
M101 · NGC 5457
Did you know
- Listed as Messier 101 in the Messier catalogue, also known as NGC 5457.
- Found in the constellation Ursa Major.
- Within reach of ordinary binoculars under dark skies.
