NGC 6872

Common card · No. 483254

NGC 6872, also known as the Condor Galaxy, is a large barred spiral galaxy of type SB(s)b pec in the constellation Pavo. It is 212 million light-years (65 Mpc) from Earth. NGC 6872 is interacting with the lenticular galaxy IC 4970, which is less than one twelfth as large. The galaxy has two elongated arms with a diameter based on ultraviolet light of over 522,000 light-years (160,000 pc), and a D25.5 isophotal diameter of over 717,000 light-years (220,000 pc), making it the largest known spiral galaxy. The galaxy contains a central black hole with a mass of 269 million solar masses (M☉). It was discovered on 27 June 1835 by English astronomer John Herschel.

Read on Wikipedia · Image ESO/VLT, Judy Schmidt, CC BY 4.0