| NGC 2648 | |
|---|---|
 NGC 2648 as seen during theSDSS | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Constellation | Cancer |
| Right ascension | 08h 42m 39s |
| Declination | +14° 17′ 08″ |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 11.82 |
| Apparent magnitude (B) | 12.8 |
| Surface brightness | 23.61 mag/arcsec2 |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SAa |
| Other designations | |
| PGC 24464, ARP 89, UGC 4541, MCG 2-22-5, CGCG 60-35, KCPG 168A | |
NGC 2648 is an unbarredspiral galaxy located in theconstellation Cancer. Its speed relative to thecosmic microwave background is 2,451 ± 19 km/s, which corresponds to a Hubble distance of 36.2 ± 2.6 Mpc (~118 million ly).[1] NGC 2648 was discovered by German-British astronomerWilliam Herschel in 1784.[1]
The galaxies PGC 24469 and NGC 2648 are designated inHalton Arp'sAtlas of Peculiar Galaxies as Arp 89.[2]
The luminosity class of NGC 2648 is I and it has a broad HI line.[1]
NGC 2648 is a retired galaxy, which is a galaxy in which star formation has practically ceased is said to be passive. However, some passive galaxies may still show faint emission lines similar to those ofLINER galaxies. This is what a team of French and Brazilian astronomers discovered. It is from them that the name retired galaxy comes.[3]
To date, three non-redshift measurements give a distance of 34.333 ± 0.231 Mpc (~112 million ly), which is within the Hubble distance values.[4]
