| NGC 855 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Constellation | Triangulum[1] |
| Right ascension | 02h 14m 03.4946s[1] |
| Declination | 27° 52′ 37.966″[1] |
| Redshift | 0.001975±0.000017[1] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 592 ± 5 km/s[1] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 12.6[1] |
| Apparent magnitude (B) | 13.3[1] |
| Other designations | |
| NGC 855 •UGC 1718 •PGC 8557 •CGCG 504-035 •MCG +05-06-016 •IRAS 02111+2738 •KUG 0211+276 •2MASX J02140361+2752378 •CN 26 613 | |
NGC 855 is astar-formingdwarfelliptical galaxy located in theTriangulum constellation.[2] The discovery and a first description (as H 26 613)[3] was realized byWilliam Herschel on 26 October 1786 and the findings made public through hisCatalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars, published the same year.[4]
NGC 855's relative velocity to thecosmic microwave background is 343 ± 18 km/s (343 ± 18) km/s, corresponding to aHubble distance of 5.06 ± 0.44 Mpc (~16.5 millionly).[1] There is some uncertainty about its precise distance since twosurface brightness fluctuation measurements give a distance of 9.280 ± 0.636 Mpc (~30.3 million ly), a range outside the Hubble distance determined by the galaxy'sredshift survey.[5]
Usinginfrared data collected from two regions in the center of the galaxy by theSpitzer Space Telescope, astronomers were able to suggest NGC 855 to be a star-forming galaxy.[2] Its HI distribution (Neutral atomic hydrogenemission lines) suggests the star-forming activity might have been triggered by aminor merger.[2]
