| NGC 5523 | |
|---|---|
 SDSS image of NGC 5523 | |
| Observation data (J2000epoch) | |
| Constellation | Boötes |
| Right ascension | 14h 14m 52.31s[1] |
| Declination | +25° 19′ 3.41″[1] |
| Redshift | 0.003488[1] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 1044 km/s[1] |
| Galactocentric velocity | 1093 km/s[2] |
| Distance | 49 ± 3 Mly (15.0 ± 1.0 Mpc)[2] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 12.75[2] |
| Absolute magnitude (V) | -18.1[nb 1] |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SA(s)cd[3] |
| Apparent size (V) | 4.6' x 1.3'[2] |
| Other designations | |
| UGC 9119,MCG +04-34-008,PGC 50895[1] | |
NGC 5523 is an unbarredspiral galaxy in the constellation ofBoötes, registered inNew General Catalogue (NGC).[1] The galaxy forms an equilateral triangle withNGC 5641 andNGC 5466 when observed using a telescope from the ground.[4]
NGC 5523 was discovered byWilliam Herschel on 19 May 1784 using 18.7-inchf/13 speculum telescope.[5][6]John Louis Emil Dreyer inside the New General Catalogue, described it as "faint, pretty large, pretty much extended 90°, 10th magnitude star to northwest".[5] It was described inBurnham's Celestial Handbook as "faint, pretty large (5.0'x0.8'), much elongated, nearly edge-on". Steve Coe, an American astronomer, described it as "faint, pretty large, much elongated (3 X 1) in PA 90 and brighter in the middle at 100X."[6]
The galaxy was originally thought to be isolated due to its lack of interaction with other galaxies in the past 1 to 3billion years. However, a 2016 study reported that some irregularities of the contour of the discs and nucleated bulge at the center of the galaxy suggested that the galaxy previously had soft collisions with other galaxies.[3]
