The sky around Draco Triplet, 3° across, north up NGC 5982 low-power eyepiece, 1° NE 1°
The sky around Draco Triplet at true scale, north up and east left, with stars to magnitude 8. The circles show the field of a low-power eyepiece and of 10×50 binoculars.

NGC 5982 · UGC 9961 · PGC 55674

Draco Triplet

Galaxy group (E + SBbc + Sb) in Draco

Galaxy group (E + SBbc + Sb) in Draco, 142 million light-years away.

DRACO

The box shows where Draco Triplet sits in Draco.

Constellation
DracoDra
Magnitude
11.1visual
Size
3.1′ × 2′about 128,000 light-years
Distance
142 million lylight-years
Best month
Julyat 9 pm
Best with
Telescope

Draco Triplet is a galaxy group (E + SBbc + Sb) in Draco, 142 million light-years away

Draco Triplet (NGC 5982, UGC 9961, PGC 55674, NGC 5981, UGC 9948) is a galaxy group (E + SBbc + Sb) in the constellation Draco, 142 million light-years away. It shines at magnitude 11.1 and spans 3.1′ × 2′ of sky, about 128,000 light-years across. It is a telescope object, 6 inches or larger, and it is highest in the evening sky in July.

Galaxy: a system of billions of stars, gas and dust held together by gravity, far outside the Milky Way. Spiral galaxies have a disk with arms; elliptical galaxies are smooth, round or oval swarms of older stars.

Finding Draco Triplet from Edasich

Edasich Draco Triplet DRACO

Draco Triplet lies 1.8° east of Edasich, the magnitude 3.3 star. That is within one binocular field.

Draco Triplet is highest in the evening in July

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC 60°N JAN at 60°N: 30° high at 9 pm FEB at 60°N: 34° high at 9 pm MAR at 60°N: 42° high at 9 pm APR at 60°N: 54° high at 9 pm MAY at 60°N: 67° high at 9 pm JUN at 60°N: 82° high at 9 pm JUL at 60°N: 83° high at 9 pm AUG at 60°N: 68° high at 9 pm SEP at 60°N: 54° high at 9 pm OCT at 60°N: 43° high at 9 pm NOV at 60°N: 34° high at 9 pm DEC at 60°N: 30° high at 9 pm 50°N JAN at 50°N: 20° high at 9 pm FEB at 50°N: 25° high at 9 pm MAR at 50°N: 34° high at 9 pm APR at 50°N: 47° high at 9 pm MAY at 50°N: 62° high at 9 pm JUN at 50°N: 77° high at 9 pm JUL at 50°N: 78° high at 9 pm AUG at 50°N: 64° high at 9 pm SEP at 50°N: 48° high at 9 pm OCT at 50°N: 35° high at 9 pm NOV at 50°N: 25° high at 9 pm DEC at 50°N: 20° high at 9 pm 40°N JAN at 40°N: 10° high at 9 pm FEB at 40°N: 16° high at 9 pm MAR at 40°N: 26° high at 9 pm APR at 40°N: 40° high at 9 pm MAY at 40°N: 55° high at 9 pm JUN at 40°N: 68° high at 9 pm JUL at 40°N: 69° high at 9 pm AUG at 40°N: 57° high at 9 pm SEP at 40°N: 41° high at 9 pm OCT at 40°N: 27° high at 9 pm NOV at 40°N: 16° high at 9 pm DEC at 40°N: 10° high at 9 pm 30°N JAN at 30°N: 0° high at 9 pm FEB at 30°N: 7° high at 9 pm MAR at 30°N: 18° high at 9 pm APR at 30°N: 32° high at 9 pm MAY at 30°N: 47° high at 9 pm JUN at 30°N: 59° high at 9 pm JUL at 30°N: 59° high at 9 pm AUG at 30°N: 48° high at 9 pm SEP at 30°N: 33° high at 9 pm OCT at 30°N: 19° high at 9 pm NOV at 30°N: 7° high at 9 pm DEC at 30°N: 0° high at 9 pm 20°N JAN at 20°N: -10° high at 9 pm FEB at 20°N: -2° high at 9 pm MAR at 20°N: 9° high at 9 pm APR at 20°N: 24° high at 9 pm MAY at 20°N: 38° high at 9 pm JUN at 20°N: 49° high at 9 pm JUL at 20°N: 50° high at 9 pm AUG at 20°N: 40° high at 9 pm SEP at 20°N: 25° high at 9 pm OCT at 20°N: 10° high at 9 pm NOV at 20°N: -2° high at 9 pm DEC at 20°N: -10° high at 9 pm 10°N JAN at 10°N: -20° high at 9 pm FEB at 10°N: -12° high at 9 pm MAR at 10°N: 0° high at 9 pm APR at 10°N: 16° high at 9 pm MAY at 10°N: 30° high at 9 pm JUN at 10°N: 39° high at 9 pm JUL at 10°N: 40° high at 9 pm AUG at 10°N: 31° high at 9 pm SEP at 10°N: 17° high at 9 pm OCT at 10°N: 2° high at 9 pm NOV at 10°N: -12° high at 9 pm DEC at 10°N: -19° high at 9 pm 0° JAN at 0°: -30° high at 9 pm FEB at 0°: -21° high at 9 pm MAR at 0°: -9° high at 9 pm APR at 0°: 7° high at 9 pm MAY at 0°: 20° high at 9 pm JUN at 0°: 29° high at 9 pm JUL at 0°: 30° high at 9 pm AUG at 0°: 22° high at 9 pm SEP at 0°: 8° high at 9 pm OCT at 0°: -7° high at 9 pm NOV at 0°: -21° high at 9 pm DEC at 0°: -29° high at 9 pm 10°S JAN at 10°S: -39° high at 9 pm FEB at 10°S: -30° high at 9 pm MAR at 10°S: -17° high at 9 pm APR at 10°S: -2° high at 9 pm MAY at 10°S: 11° high at 9 pm JUN at 10°S: 19° high at 9 pm JUL at 10°S: 20° high at 9 pm AUG at 10°S: 12° high at 9 pm SEP at 10°S: -1° high at 9 pm OCT at 10°S: -16° high at 9 pm NOV at 10°S: -30° high at 9 pm DEC at 10°S: -39° high at 9 pm 20°S JAN at 20°S: -49° high at 9 pm FEB at 20°S: -39° high at 9 pm MAR at 20°S: -26° high at 9 pm APR at 20°S: -10° high at 9 pm MAY at 20°S: 2° high at 9 pm JUN at 20°S: 10° high at 9 pm JUL at 20°S: 10° high at 9 pm AUG at 20°S: 3° high at 9 pm SEP at 20°S: -10° high at 9 pm OCT at 20°S: -24° high at 9 pm NOV at 20°S: -39° high at 9 pm DEC at 20°S: -49° high at 9 pm 30°S JAN at 30°S: -59° high at 9 pm FEB at 30°S: -48° high at 9 pm MAR at 30°S: -34° high at 9 pm APR at 30°S: -19° high at 9 pm MAY at 30°S: -7° high at 9 pm JUN at 30°S: -0° high at 9 pm JUL at 30°S: -0° high at 9 pm AUG at 30°S: -6° high at 9 pm SEP at 30°S: -18° high at 9 pm OCT at 30°S: -32° high at 9 pm NOV at 30°S: -48° high at 9 pm DEC at 30°S: -59° high at 9 pm 40°S JAN at 40°S: -68° high at 9 pm FEB at 40°S: -56° high at 9 pm MAR at 40°S: -42° high at 9 pm APR at 40°S: -27° high at 9 pm MAY at 40°S: -17° high at 9 pm JUN at 40°S: -10° high at 9 pm JUL at 40°S: -10° high at 9 pm AUG at 40°S: -16° high at 9 pm SEP at 40°S: -27° high at 9 pm OCT at 40°S: -40° high at 9 pm NOV at 40°S: -56° high at 9 pm DEC at 40°S: -68° high at 9 pm below horizon low 20-40° 40-60° overhead-ish

The chart gives its height above the horizon at 9 pm through the year, from 60°N to 40°S. It can be seen from the whole northern hemisphere and south to about 31°S, and never sets north of 31°N.

Draco Triplet is 142 million light-years away

The light seen from Draco Triplet tonight left it about 142 million years ago, long before modern humans existed. It ranks 266 of 422 by distance among the galaxies on Go Astronomy. Distance source: Cosmicflows-4 (Tully et al. 2023), Tully-Fisher.

Objects within 6° of Draco Triplet

Draco Triplet catalog data

FieldValue
DesignationsNGC 5982, UGC 9961, PGC 55674, NGC 5981, UGC 9948, PGC 55647, NGC 5985, UGC 9969, PGC 55725
Typegalaxy group (E + SBbc + Sb)
ConstellationDraco
Right ascension (J2000)15h 38.7m
Declination (J2000)+59° 21′
Magnitude11.1
Surface brightness14.4 mag/arcmin²
Apparent size3.1′ × 2′
True size128,000 light-years
Distance142 million light-years (Cosmicflows-4 (Tully et al. 2023), Tully-Fisher)
Best monthJuly
Best withTelescope