H-NGC3344
Galaxy in Leo Minor
About
Seen face-on in Leo Minor, this barred spiral lies about 22.5 million light-years away. It has an inner ring and an outer pseudo-ring, and sits in relative isolation. William Herschel found it in 1785, and it is in the Herschel 400 list.
Imaging tips
- At about 7×7′ it fills a third to half of an APS-C frame at 3460–5770 mm, so a long focal length is required.
- Faint at 22.8 mag/arcsec². One imager's LRGB image totalled 19.75 h on a 17 inch f/6.8 astrograph.
- Best around February and March; it peaks near 65° altitude from 50°N.
Facts
- Size
- 7′ × 7′
- Magnitude
- 9.9
- Coordinates
- RA 10h 43.5m, Dec +24° 55′
- Framing, APS-C
- 3460–5770 mm
- Framing, full frame
- longer than 4000 mm
- Best months
- Feb, Mar
- Peak altitude
- 65° from 50°N, 80° from 35°N