Messier 49
Encyclopedia
Messier 49 is an elliptical
/ lenticular galaxy
about 49 million
light-year
s away in the constellation
Virgo
. The galaxy was discovered by Charles Messier
in 1771.
observed within this galaxy is SN 1969Q. The supernova was discovered in June 1969.
. The galaxy is located at the center of one of the subclusters within the Virgo Cluster.
Elliptical galaxy
An elliptical galaxy is a galaxy having an approximately ellipsoidal shape and a smooth, nearly featureless brightness profile. They range in shape from nearly spherical to highly flat and in size from hundreds of millions to over one trillion stars...
/ lenticular galaxy
Lenticular galaxy
A lenticular galaxy is a type of galaxy which is intermediate between an elliptical galaxy and a spiral galaxy in galaxy morphological classification schemes. Lenticular galaxies are disk galaxies which have used up or lost most of their interstellar matter and therefore have very little ongoing...
about 49 million
1 E22 m
To help compare different orders of magnitude, this page lists distances starting at 10 Zm .Distances shorter than 10 Zm* 24 Zm — 2.5 million light years — Distance to the Andromeda Galaxy...
light-year
Light-year
A light-year, also light year or lightyear is a unit of length, equal to just under 10 trillion kilometres...
s away in the constellation
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....
Virgo
Virgo (constellation)
Virgo is one of the constellations of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for virgin, and its symbol is . Lying between Leo to the west and Libra to the east, it is the second largest constellation in the sky...
. The galaxy was discovered by Charles Messier
Charles Messier
Charles Messier was a French astronomer most notable for publishing an astronomical catalogue consisting of deep sky objects such as nebulae and star clusters that came to be known as the 110 "Messier objects"...
in 1771.
Supernovae
The only supernovaSupernova
A supernova is a stellar explosion that is more energetic than a nova. It is pronounced with the plural supernovae or supernovas. Supernovae are extremely luminous and cause a burst of radiation that often briefly outshines an entire galaxy, before fading from view over several weeks or months...
observed within this galaxy is SN 1969Q. The supernova was discovered in June 1969.
Companion galaxies
NGC 4467 forms a visual pair with Messier 49.Virgo Cluster membership
Messier 49 is the brightest member of the Virgo ClusterVirgo Cluster
The Virgo Cluster is a cluster of galaxies whose center is 53.8 ± 0.3 Mly away in the constellation Virgo. Comprising approximately 1300 member galaxies, the cluster forms the heart of the larger Local Supercluster, of which the Local Group is an outlying member...
. The galaxy is located at the center of one of the subclusters within the Virgo Cluster.