Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Taurus (Tau)
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NGC 628, John Bozeman
NGC 628
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NGC 628

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NGC 628, John Bozeman
NGC 628
Powered byPixInsight

NGC 628

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Description

Messier 74 (also known as NGC 628 and Phantom Galaxy) is a large spiral galaxy in the equatorial constellation Pisces. It is about 32 million light-years away from Earth. The galaxy contains two clearly defined spiral arms and is therefore used as an archetypal example of a grand design spiral galaxy. The galaxy's low surface brightness makes it the most difficult Messier object for amateur astronomers to observe. Its relatively large angular (that is, apparent) size and the galaxy's face-on orientation make it an ideal object for professional astronomers who want to study spiral arm structure and spiral density waves. It is estimated that M74 hosts about 100 billion stars. In July 2022, it was observed by the James Webb Space Telescope, not long after it began taking its first pictures and observations. The telescope's imagery created some speculation that the galaxy may contain a wormhole, but, being a major breakthrough, that would need to be confirmed extensively first by other data, photos, and measurements, from Webb and other instruments.

IR Data from the James Webb Space Telescope

Color mapped:
F335M - Red
F300M - Green
F200W - Blue

Processed with FITS Liberator, PixInsight and Photoshop 2022

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NGC 628, John Bozeman