| NGC 3972 | |
|---|---|
 NGC 3972 imaged by theHubble Space Telescope.[1] | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Constellation | Ursa Major |
| Right ascension | 11h 55m 45.1s[2] |
| Declination | +55° 19′ 14″[2] |
| Redshift | 0.002799[3] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 846 km/s[2] |
| Distance | 66.0 Mly (20.23 Mpc)[2] |
| Group orcluster | NGC 3992 Group[4] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 13.14[3] |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SA(s)bc,[5] SBbc[6] |
| Size | c. 50,000ly |
| Other designations | |
| IRAS 11531+5535,2MASX J11554511+5519144,UGC 6904,LEDA 37466,MCG +09-20-032[3] | |
NGC 3972 is aspiral galaxy located in the northernconstellation ofUrsa Major. It was discovered byWilliam Herschel on April 14, 1789.[7] This galaxy is located 66 millionlight years away and is receding with a heliocentricradial velocity of846 km/s.[2] It is a member of theNGC 3992 Group of galaxies.[4]
NGC 3972 along withNGC 3977 are listed together asHolm 304 inErik Holmberg'sA Study of Double and Multiple Galaxies Together with Inquiries into some General Metagalactic Problems, published in 1937.[8] This grouping is purely optical, as NGC 3977 is about four times farther away than NGC 3972.[9]
NGC 3972 is aradio galaxy, i.e. a galaxy with giant regions of radio emission extending well beyond its visible structure.[10]
According to A.M. Garcia, NGC 3972 is part of the NGC 3631 group (also known asLGG 241). This group includes at least 10 galaxies, includingNGC 3631,NGC 3657,NGC 3718,NGC 3729,NGC 3913,NGC 3998, UGC 6251, UGC 6446, and UGC 6816.[11]
Twosupernovae have been observed in NGC 3972:
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