Antennae Galaxies
Scientific overview
Antennae Galaxies is a barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Corvus. It shines at apparent magnitude 11.04 and spans about 5.36 arcminutes of sky.
Observation guide
Guidance follows standard observing practice, derived from the object's real magnitude and position. A dark, moonless sky always helps.
Location in the sky
Precision measurements
Distances and velocities from SIMBAD and redshift from NED · NGC 4039
| Distance | 6.7221e+7 ly | SIMBAD · catalogued |
| Physical size (major axis) | 104,808 ly | SIMBAD · derived |
| Physical size (minor axis) | 53,382 ly | SIMBAD · derived |
| Redshift (z) | 0.005474 ± 3.0000e-5 | NED · catalogued |
| Radial velocity | 1,637 km/s | SIMBAD · measured |
| Right ascension (ICRS) | 180.47296 deg | SIMBAD · measured |
| Declination (ICRS) | -18.88619 deg | SIMBAD · measured |
Full field-level provenance
- Distance: Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · SIMBAD · mesDistance · dist · 2016AJ....152...50T · catalogued value · source value 20.61 Mpc · retrieved 2026-07-11
- Physical size (major axis): Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · derived (OpenNGC angular size × SIMBAD distance) · physical size = angular size × distance (small-angle); angular size from OpenNGC, distance from SIMBAD mesDistance · derived · retrieved 2026-07-11
- Physical size (minor axis): Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · derived (OpenNGC angular size × SIMBAD distance) · physical size = angular size × distance (small-angle); angular size from OpenNGC, distance from SIMBAD mesDistance · derived · retrieved 2026-07-11
- Redshift (z): NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database · NED · ObjectLookup · Redshift · 1989spce.book.....L · catalogued value · NED quality SUN · retrieved 2026-07-11
- Radial velocity: Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · SIMBAD · basic · rvz_radvel · 1989ESOLV.C......0L · direct catalogue measurement · retrieved 2026-07-11
- Right ascension (ICRS): Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · SIMBAD · basic · ra · 2020MNRAS.494.1784A · direct catalogue measurement · retrieved 2026-07-11
- Declination (ICRS): Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) · SIMBAD · basic · dec · 2020MNRAS.494.1784A · direct catalogue measurement · retrieved 2026-07-11
Physical size is derived from the OpenNGC angular size and the catalogued distance (small-angle: size = angle × distance). Redshift is the object's measured redshift — a negative value is a blueshift (the galaxy is approaching, its motion dominated by local rather than cosmic expansion). Fields a source did not provide are omitted, never invented.
Other objects in Corvus
| Object | Type | Mag | Size (′) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antennae GalaxiesC 60 · NGC 4038 | Barred spiral galaxy | 10.2 | 5.42 |
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- OpenNGCOpenNGC (M. Verga) — NGC/IC, Messier, and Caldwell catalogue data
Openly-licensed deep-sky catalogue: object types, positions, magnitudes, sizes, morphology, and cross-identifiers.