| NGC 3599 | |
|---|---|
 NGC 3599 bySloan Digital Sky Survey | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Constellation | Leo |
| Right ascension | 11h 15m 26.949s[1] |
| Declination | +18° 06′ 37.43″[1] |
| Redshift | 0.00277[2] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 876±18 km/s[3] |
| Distance | 67 Mly (20.4 Mpc)[4] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 10.178 |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SA0:[4] |
| Other designations | |
| NGC 3599,UGC 6281,MCG +03-29-015,PGC 34326[5] | |
NGC 3599 is alenticular galaxy located in theconstellationLeo. It was discovered byWilliam Herschel on March 14, 1784.[6] The galaxy is located at a distance of 67 millionlight-years (20.4 Mpc) from the Sun.[4] NGC 3599 is a member of theLeo II group of galaxies[4] in theVirgocentric flow.[7]
Themorphological classification of NGC 3599 is SA0:,[4] which indicates this is a lenticular galaxy but with some uncertainty in the classification. There is a weak ring structure45″ to 71″ from the nucleus, and a small bar about11″ in length.[8] The galaxy is inclined at an angle of 28° to theplane of the sky,[4] so it is being viewed from nearly face-on. The nucleus is compact and not associated with any non-thermalactivity.[4] Although not optically active, NGC 3599 is classified as aSeyfert 2 or aLINER-type galaxy.[9] The mass of the central black hole is estimated at(1.3±0.6)×106 M☉.[4]
In 2003, a sudden rise inX-ray emission from NGC 3599 was observed by theXMM-Newtonspace observatory. Follow-up observations showed a rapid decay in flux during the following years. This was originally suggested as a candidatetidal disruption event but it may instead have been caused by thermal instability of theaccretion disk orbiting ablack hole.[9]
Media related toNGC 3599 at Wikimedia Commons