This
Astrobin Debut Object is a galaxy group of 4 galaxies, called Hickson 46, located 380 million light years away in the constellation of Leo at a declination of +18 degrees.
This is a true cluster - the 4 galaxies are all about the same distance away. Hickson said that all of these 4 galaxies are ellipticals, but 2 of the 4 look like they could be spirals to me.
The largest and brightest galaxy, Hickson 46a, spans 35 arc-seconds, which corresponds to a diameter of 70,000 light years. The other 3 galaxies are slightly smaller. The most interesting part of the image is the close pair Hickson 46b and 46c, which appear to be interacting. Hickson 46b looks disturbed with a looping star stream, and a broader fainter stream also appears to connect the 2 galaxies on the right side.
The Hickson catalog is a collection of 100 galaxy groups, established by Paul Hickson in 1982. Hickson compact galaxy groups are tightly spaced and somewhat isolated from other galaxies. A typical Hickson group has 4 galaxies, but some have up to 8. You can see more about Hickson galaxy groups in my
Astrobin Hickson Collection.
The spiral galaxy seen at lower right is also the same distance away but, based on the established Hickson criteria, is too far away from the rest of the group to be included officially as part of Hickson 46.
Several interesting background galaxies are seen in the upper right and lower left.
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