All About Space - UK (2020-02)

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The Black Eye Galaxy (Messier 64)

A dark lane of dust curved around this distant

spiral galaxy gives it its nickname, but you will

only appreciate its ‘black-eye’ appearance through

the high-power eyepieces of large telescopes.

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Messier 53

At magnitude 7.6 this globular cluster is bright

enough to be seen in small telescopes, but larger

instruments will resolve its small, hazy ball into a

mottled disc of stars.

3

The Needle Galaxy (NGC 4565)

This is one of the most prominent and

famous edge-on galaxies in the sky. Large

telescopes best show its bright core silhouetted

against its dark disc.

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NGC 4559

The spiral arms of this obliquely viewed

ninth-magnitude galaxy are tightly wound, so

hard to see properly, but a large telescope will reveal

their star-forming regions as brighter patches.

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The Whale Galaxy (NGC 4631)

This ancient globular cluster is visible even in

small telescopes as an out-of-focus star. Larger

instruments reveal its mottled core.

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The Silver Needle Galaxy

(NGC 4244)

You’ll need a large telescope, powerful

eyepiece and a perfect sky to see this edge-on spiral

galaxy – even then it will only look like a pale, thin,

ghostly streak of grey with a slightly brighter core.

The Whale Galaxy (NGC 4631) © NASA;ESA

Deep sky challenge

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