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| NGC 3314 | |
|---|---|
 NGC 3314a (foreground) and NGC 3314b (background) imaged by theHubble Space Telescope | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| 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 features | galaxy overlapping another |
| Other designations | |
NGC 3314 is a pair of overlappingspiral galaxies in theconstellation ofHydra. The pair was discovered by British astronomerJohn 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 same line of sight.
The unique alignment of bothspiral galaxies givesastronomers the opportunity to measure the properties ofinterstellar dust in the face-on foreground galaxy (NGC 3314a). The dust appears as dark blue against the background galaxy (NGC 3314b). Unlikeinteracting 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 asupernova, 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 thebackground galaxyNGC 3314b.
A dust tail can also be seen from NGC 3314a, being a sign ofRam Pressure stripping caused by NGC 3314a rushing through theICM of its home cluster, theHydra Cluster. Both of the galaxies are members of theHydra Cluster.[8]
Media related toNGC 3314 at Wikimedia Commons
