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NGC 4486

Observation data
Type	E1
Right ascension (RA, α)	12 h 30.8 m (J2000,00)
Declination (Dec, δ)	+12° 24' (J2000,00)
Distance from Earth	60 millions LY (18.4 Mpc)
Apparent magnitude (V)	+8.6^m
Apparent dimension(s) (V)	7.0'
Physical characteristics
Mass (Sun=1)	> 1.0 × 10¹²
Diameter	120,000 light years
Color (B-V)
Absolute magnitude	-22^m
Peculiarities	-Radio emission -jet from galaxy core -huge (13,000) globular cluster system
Other denominations	NGC 4486 Virgo A radio source Arp 152

M87 (NGC 4486) is a giant elliptical galaxy, dominating the Virgo cluster. It is one of the biggest known galaxies. Its relative closeness makes it a preferred target for studying the high-energy activities currently going on in its nucleus, suspected of holding a supermassive black hole. Astronomers believe that the black hole in this galaxy is approximately 3×10⁹ solar masses.

See also:

Messier 87, SEDS Messier pages

Referenced By

List of astronomical topics | List of astronomical topics (N-Z) | New General Catalogue | Timeline of galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and large-scale structure | Timeline of galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and large scale structure | Timeline of knowledge about galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and large-scale structure

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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "NGC 4486".