H-NGC3628 — Hamburger Galaxy
Galaxy in Leo
About
An edge-on spiral galaxy in Leo, about 35 million light-years away, and the third member of the Leo Triplet alongside M65 and M66. A broad dust lane splits its disk, which gives the Hamburger nickname. Interaction with another galaxy has pulled out a tidal tail that may reach 300,000 light-years. It is in the Herschel 400.
Imaging tips
- At 1620–2690 mm on APS-C (2480–4130 mm on full frame) the 15′ × 4′ disk spans about a third to half of the frame.
- M65 and M66 lie roughly 36′ away, so the full Triplet needs a wider field or a mosaic, not the framing above.
- Faint at 22.6 mag/arcsec². One imager gathered 14.1 hours in Hα plus LRGB, another more than 23 hours.
- In that 23-hour image the tail shows in the upper left of the frame, so leave room on that side.
- Best around February and March; it peaks near 54° from 50°N.
Facts
- Size
- 15′ × 4′
- Magnitude
- 9.5
- Coordinates
- RA 11h 20.3m, Dec +13° 35′
- Framing, APS-C
- 1620–2690 mm
- Framing, full frame
- 2480–4130 mm
- Best months
- Feb, Mar
- Peak altitude
- 54° from 50°N, 69° from 35°N