skyandtelescope.com • JUNE 2019 33
M3M53M64M85M91 M88 M98M99M100441446514725(^47474712)
γ
α
β
β
LEO
+30°
+25°
13 h 30 m 13 h 00 m 12 h 30 m 12 h 00 m
+15°
+20°
COMA BERENICES
graceful galaxy show a smaller northern arm that isn’t at all
apparent in the eyepiece.
NGC 3938 deserves a very long look. This remarkable
face-on spiral will stingily hide its structure from the casual
observer, who will see only a rather faint round object with
a brighter center. A much deeper examination will enable
its branching arms to emerge. A delicate network of brighter
knots defi nes this graceful grand spiral’s swirling arms. Per-
haps no other object on our tour is better proof of the effec-
tiveness of careful, prolonged study. It’s located 2° northwest
of 5th-magnitude 67 Ursae Majoris.
The spiral structure in NGC 4030 may elude you as well,
but this galaxy is worth the effort to fi nd. Look for it 3° 45′
southeast of Beta (β) Virginis. It lies pleasingly nestled
among a number of stars, including two of 11th magnitude
that border its west side, one north and one south of the
extended halo. In the eyepiece, I detect some faint mottling
that extends beyond the obvious central core and gives the
unmistakable impression of spiral arms, but I’m not sure we
actually resolve them.
MAGNIFICENT SPIRAL Another splendid
example of a fl occulent galaxy, NGC 4414
in Coma Berenices highlights how these
objects have older and more red and yellow
stars at their centers. New stars are con-
stantly being born in the spiral arms, which
is why these outer regions look bluish.
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NASA/^ ESAqUMBRELLA GALAXY Likely interactions with a smaller galaxy re-
sulted in the stream of material seen emanating to the right of NGC 4651.
The stream won’t be visible in backyard telescopes, but when you spot
the galaxy in your eyepiece, bear in mind this extraordinary structure.