NGC 3314

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NGC 3314
Hubble view of NGC 3314 - Heic1208a.tif
NGC 3314a (foreground) and NGC 3314b (background) imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation Hydra
Right ascension 10h 37m 13.2s [1]
Declination −27° 41′ 04.0″ [1]
Redshift 0.009537 (a) [2]
0.015481 (b) [3]
Distance 154.0 ± 10.9  Mly (47.23 ± 3.33  Mpc) (a) [2]
239.8 ± 16.8  Mly (73.52 ± 5.16  Mpc) (b) [3]
Apparent magnitude  (V)14 [1]
Characteristics
Type SBbc/SAab
Apparent size  (V)2′.6 × 1′.7
Notable featuresgalaxy overlapping another
Other designations
  • (NGC 3314): ESO 501-46, AM 1034-272, MCG-04-25-041
  • (NGC 3314A): LEDA 31531
  • (NGC 3314B): LEDA 31532

NGC 3314 is a pair of overlapping spiral galaxies in the constellation of Hydra. The pair was discovered by British astronomer John Herschel on 24 March 1835. [4] [5] Herschel and others did not realize that what appeared to be a single galaxy, is actually two galaxies in the exact same line of sight.

NGC 3314 as seen by the legacy surveys, shows a large extended tail, mostly coming from the foreground galaxy, this is seen as signs of ram pressure NGC 3314 legacy dr10.jpg
NGC 3314 as seen by the legacy surveys, shows a large extended tail, mostly coming from the foreground galaxy, this is seen as signs of ram pressure

The unique alignment of both spiral galaxies gives astronomers the opportunity to measure the properties of interstellar dust in the face-on foreground galaxy (NGC 3314a). The dust appears as dark blue against the background galaxy (NGC 3314b). Unlike interacting galaxies, the two components of NGC 3314 are physically unrelated, and are too distant from one another to interact.

In a March 2000 observation of the galaxies, a prominent green star-like object was seen in one of the arms of one of the galaxies. Astronomers theorized that it could have been a supernova, but the unique filtering properties of the foreground galaxy made it difficult to decide definitively. [7] NGC 3314a has its spiral arms and copious amounts of dust obscuring the background galaxy NGC 3314b.

A dust tail can also be seen from NGC 3314a, being a sign of Ram Pressure stripping caused by NGC 3314a rushing through the ICM of its home cluster, the Hydra Cluster. Both of the galaxies are members of the Hydra Cluster. [8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Results for object NGC 3314". NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database. NASA and Caltech . Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Results for object NGC 3314A". NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database. NASA and Caltech . Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Results for object NGC 3314B". NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database. NASA and Caltech . Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  4. ↑ Herschel, J. F. W (1864). "Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London . 154: 1–137. Bibcode:1864RSPT..154....1H. doi: 10.1098/rstl.1864.0001 .
  5. ↑ Seligman, Courtney. "New General Catalogue Objects: NGC 3314". Celestial Atlas. Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  6. ↑ Hess, Kelley M.; Kotulla, Ralf; Chen, Hao; Carignan, Claude; Gallagher, John S.; Jarrett, Thomas H.; Kraan-Korteweg, Renée C. (2022-12-01). "NGC 3314a/b and NGC 3312: Ram pressure stripping in Hydra I cluster substructure". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 668: A184. arXiv: 2209.05605 . doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202243412 . ISSN   0004-6361.
  7. ↑ Keel, Bill; Frattare, Lisa. "NGC 3314 Variable Object". heritage.stsci.edu. Retrieved 2015-11-05.
  8. ↑ Richter, O.-G. (February 1989). "The Hydra I cluster of galaxies. V – A catalogue of galaxies in the cluster area". Astronomy and Astrophysics Supplement Series. 77: 237–256. Bibcode:1989A&AS...77..237R.
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