NGC 5940

NGC 5940
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation	Serpens
Right ascension	15h 31m 18.070s
Declination	+07d 27m 27.91s
Redshift	0.03405
Heliocentric radial velocity	10,209 km/s
Distance	500 Mly (153.3 Mpc)
Apparent magnitude (V)	15.56
Characteristics
Type	Seyfert galaxy
Size	140,000 ly
Other designations
PGC 55295, IRAS F15288+0737, UGC 9876, LEDA 55295, MRK 1511, MRK 9030, MCG +01-39-025

NGC 5940 is a barred spiral galaxy located in the Serpens constellation.^[1][2][3] The galaxy was found on April 19, 1887, by Lewis Swift, an American astronomer.^[2] NGC 5940 is located 500 million light-years away from the Milky Way and it is approximately 140,000 light-years across in diameter.^[3][2]

NGC 5940 is a Seyfert type 1 galaxy and is considered a quasar according to the SIMBAD database.^[4][5] It is registered under the Markarian Catalogue as Markarian 1511 or MRK 9030.^[6] It has an bright active core, meaning there is a presence of an acceleration disc around its huge black hole. This in turn, emits strong radiation and ultraviolet rays that later get ejected into the depths of space.

References

1. "NGC 5940 - Spiral Galaxy in | TheSkyLive.com". theskylive.com. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
2. "New General Catalog Objects: NGC 5900 - 5949". cseligman.com. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
3. "By Name | NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database". ned.ipac.caltech.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
4. Adegoke, Oluwashina K. (May 2022). "XMM-Newton and Swift Observations of the Seyfert 1 AGN NGC 5940". Astrophysics and Space Science. 367 (5): 51. arXiv:2205.11612. Bibcode:2022Ap&SS.367...51A. doi:10.1007/s10509-022-04082-1. ISSN 0004-640X.
5. "NGC 5940". simbad.u-strasbg.fr. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
6. "Your NED Search Results". ned.ipac.caltech.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-16.