Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Cepheus (Cep)  ·  Contains:  Fireworks Galaxy  ·  HD196085  ·  NGC 6939  ·  NGC 6946
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Fireworks Galaxy and open Cluster * NGC 6946 + NGC 6939, Johannes Teupen
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Fireworks Galaxy and open Cluster * NGC 6946 + NGC 6939

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Fireworks Galaxy and open Cluster * NGC 6946 + NGC 6939, Johannes Teupen
Powered byPixInsight

Fireworks Galaxy and open Cluster * NGC 6946 + NGC 6939

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Description

NGC 6946, also known as Fireworks Galaxy, is a spiral galaxy in the constellation of Cepheus, along with the open star cluster NGC 6939. 
NGC 6946's appearance resembles a spinning pinwheel, hence its popular name. NGC 6946 is more than 20 million light-years away, making it about 8 times as distant as the famous Andromeda galaxy. 
The visual magnitude is only 9 mag, one reason is that NGC 6946's light is obscured by gas and mostly dust from our galaxy. The open star cluster NGC 6939 has an age of 1.6 billion years and, at a distance of about 5000 light years, is not far away by astronomical standards, in contrast to the Fireworks galaxy, although it can never be reached by humans.

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Fireworks Galaxy and open Cluster * NGC 6946 + NGC 6939, Johannes Teupen