NGC 218 (PGC 2720) & PGC 2726 (Gary Imm)

Celestial hemisphere: Northern · Constellation: Andromeda (And) · Contains: PGC 2077321 · PGC 2078097 · PGC 2078279 · PGC 2078957 · PGC 2720 · PGC 2726

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NGC 218 (PGC 2720) & PGC 2726

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NGC 218 (PGC 2720) & PGC 2726

This object is a pair of interacting galaxies located 500 million light years away in the constellation of Andromeda at a declination of +36 degrees. The pair spans 2 arc-minutes in our apparent view, which corresponds to a actual span distance of about 300,000 light years.

The larger galaxy on the left is NGC 218 and is about the same size as our Milky Way. Other names for this galaxy include PGC 2720 and UGC 480. The smaller galaxy on the right is PGC 2726.

Both galaxies have been significantly disturbed by their interaction. Many bright blue star clusters, typical of gravitationally induced new star formation, are visible in the left galaxy. Some star streams are also present. I am not sure why this striking pair was not included in the Arp catalog of peculiar galaxies.

I like the tiny galaxy trio at upper left and the two tiny but detailed spiral galaxies on the right side.

Of any object I have imaged, this object is the most misidentified. Most sources, including reliable ones such as SIMBAD and Cartes du Ciel, incorrectly reference NGC 218 to a nearby galaxy, PGC 2493. So if you are looking for the galaxy of this image, do not use NGC 218 in your search, go-to or database programs. Use the alternative name of PGC 2720 instead.

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Status	Advanced success
Started	...
Astrometry.net job	2991078
PixInsight job	3898U1R90YZNQOOVDH8V85EHMVTOX9GQ
PixInsight queue size	n/a
PixInsight stage	n/a

RA (center)	00h46m35s.734
RA (top/left)	00h45m40s.400
RA (top/right)	00h47m36s.1000
RA (bottom/right)	00h47m31s.687
RA (bottom/left)	00h45m34s.271

Dec (center)	+36°19′43″.20
Dec (top/left)	+36°10′31″.89
Dec (top/right)	+36°12′05″.68
Dec (bottom/right)	+36°28′52″.79
Dec (bottom/left)	+36°27′18″.33

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NGC 218 (PGC 2720) & PGC 2726

NGC 218 (PGC 2720) & PGC 2726

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NGC 218 (PGC 2720) & PGC 2726

NGC 218 (PGC 2720) & PGC 2726

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