The sky around NGC 4993, 3° across, north up low-power eyepiece, 1° NE 1°
The sky around NGC 4993 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 4994 · ESO 508-018 · PGC 45657

NGC 4993

Lenticular galaxy (E-S0) in Hydra

Lenticular galaxy (E-S0) in Hydra, 128 million light-years away.

HYDRA

The box shows where NGC 4993 sits in Hydra.

Constellation
HydraHya
Magnitude
13.4visual
Size
1.6′ × 1.4′about 57,700 light-years
Distance
128 million lylight-years
Best month
Mayat 9 pm
Best with
Telescope

NGC 4993 is a lenticular galaxy (E-S0) in Hydra, 128 million light-years away

NGC 4993 (NGC 4994, ESO 508-018, PGC 45657) is a lenticular galaxy (E-S0) in the constellation Hydra, 128 million light-years away. It shines at magnitude 13.4 and spans 1.6′ × 1.4′ of sky, about 57,700 light-years across. It is a telescope object, 6 inches or larger, and it is highest in the evening sky in May.

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.

NGC 4993 is AM 1307-230 in the Arp-Madore catalog

Halton Arp and Barry Madore listed it in A Catalogue of Southern Peculiar Galaxies and Associations (1987), from their search of the UK Schmidt southern sky survey plates. The number 1307-230 is its position: right ascension 13h 07m and declination -23.0°.

Finding NGC 4993 from Naga

Naga NGC 4993 HYDRA

NGC 4993 lies 2.1° west of Naga, the magnitude 3.0 star. That is within one binocular field.

NGC 4993 is highest in the evening in May

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC 60°N JAN at 60°N: -39° high at 9 pm FEB at 60°N: -24° high at 9 pm MAR at 60°N: -11° high at 9 pm APR at 60°N: 1° high at 9 pm MAY at 60°N: 6° high at 9 pm JUN at 60°N: 5° high at 9 pm JUL at 60°N: -3° high at 9 pm AUG at 60°N: -16° high at 9 pm SEP at 60°N: -31° high at 9 pm OCT at 60°N: -45° high at 9 pm NOV at 60°N: -53° high at 9 pm DEC at 60°N: -50° high at 9 pm 50°N JAN at 50°N: -42° high at 9 pm FEB at 50°N: -22° high at 9 pm MAR at 50°N: -6° high at 9 pm APR at 50°N: 9° high at 9 pm MAY at 50°N: 16° high at 9 pm JUN at 50°N: 14° high at 9 pm JUL at 50°N: 4° high at 9 pm AUG at 50°N: -12° high at 9 pm SEP at 50°N: -31° high at 9 pm OCT at 50°N: -50° high at 9 pm NOV at 50°N: -63° high at 9 pm DEC at 50°N: -59° high at 9 pm 40°N JAN at 40°N: -43° high at 9 pm FEB at 40°N: -20° high at 9 pm MAR at 40°N: -1° high at 9 pm APR at 40°N: 17° high at 9 pm MAY at 40°N: 26° high at 9 pm JUN at 40°N: 24° high at 9 pm JUL at 40°N: 11° high at 9 pm AUG at 40°N: -8° high at 9 pm SEP at 40°N: -31° high at 9 pm OCT at 40°N: -53° high at 9 pm NOV at 40°N: -72° high at 9 pm DEC at 40°N: -66° high at 9 pm 30°N JAN at 30°N: -43° high at 9 pm FEB at 30°N: -17° high at 9 pm MAR at 30°N: 4° high at 9 pm APR at 30°N: 25° high at 9 pm MAY at 30°N: 36° high at 9 pm JUN at 30°N: 33° high at 9 pm JUL at 30°N: 18° high at 9 pm AUG at 30°N: -4° high at 9 pm SEP at 30°N: -29° high at 9 pm OCT at 30°N: -55° high at 9 pm NOV at 30°N: -80° high at 9 pm DEC at 30°N: -70° high at 9 pm 20°N JAN at 20°N: -42° high at 9 pm FEB at 20°N: -14° high at 9 pm MAR at 20°N: 9° high at 9 pm APR at 20°N: 32° high at 9 pm MAY at 20°N: 46° high at 9 pm JUN at 20°N: 42° high at 9 pm JUL at 20°N: 24° high at 9 pm AUG at 20°N: -0° high at 9 pm SEP at 20°N: -27° high at 9 pm OCT at 20°N: -54° high at 9 pm NOV at 20°N: -82° high at 9 pm DEC at 20°N: -70° high at 9 pm 10°N JAN at 10°N: -39° high at 9 pm FEB at 10°N: -11° high at 9 pm MAR at 10°N: 14° high at 9 pm APR at 10°N: 39° high at 9 pm MAY at 10°N: 55° high at 9 pm JUN at 10°N: 51° high at 9 pm JUL at 10°N: 30° high at 9 pm AUG at 10°N: 4° high at 9 pm SEP at 10°N: -24° high at 9 pm OCT at 10°N: -51° high at 9 pm NOV at 10°N: -74° high at 9 pm DEC at 10°N: -66° high at 9 pm 0° JAN at 0°: -34° high at 9 pm FEB at 0°: -7° high at 9 pm MAR at 0°: 19° high at 9 pm APR at 0°: 45° high at 9 pm MAY at 0°: 65° high at 9 pm JUN at 0°: 59° high at 9 pm JUL at 0°: 36° high at 9 pm AUG at 0°: 8° high at 9 pm SEP at 0°: -20° high at 9 pm OCT at 0°: -46° high at 9 pm NOV at 0°: -65° high at 9 pm DEC at 0°: -59° high at 9 pm 10°S JAN at 10°S: -29° high at 9 pm FEB at 10°S: -3° high at 9 pm MAR at 10°S: 22° high at 9 pm APR at 10°S: 50° high at 9 pm MAY at 10°S: 74° high at 9 pm JUN at 10°S: 66° high at 9 pm JUL at 10°S: 40° high at 9 pm AUG at 10°S: 12° high at 9 pm SEP at 10°S: -15° high at 9 pm OCT at 10°S: -39° high at 9 pm NOV at 10°S: -56° high at 9 pm DEC at 10°S: -51° high at 9 pm 20°S JAN at 20°S: -23° high at 9 pm FEB at 20°S: 1° high at 9 pm MAR at 20°S: 26° high at 9 pm APR at 20°S: 54° high at 9 pm MAY at 20°S: 80° high at 9 pm JUN at 20°S: 70° high at 9 pm JUL at 20°S: 43° high at 9 pm AUG at 20°S: 16° high at 9 pm SEP at 20°S: -11° high at 9 pm OCT at 20°S: -32° high at 9 pm NOV at 20°S: -46° high at 9 pm DEC at 20°S: -42° high at 9 pm 30°S JAN at 30°S: -17° high at 9 pm FEB at 30°S: 6° high at 9 pm MAR at 30°S: 28° high at 9 pm APR at 30°S: 55° high at 9 pm MAY at 30°S: 79° high at 9 pm JUN at 30°S: 70° high at 9 pm JUL at 30°S: 45° high at 9 pm AUG at 30°S: 19° high at 9 pm SEP at 30°S: -5° high at 9 pm OCT at 30°S: -25° high at 9 pm NOV at 30°S: -36° high at 9 pm DEC at 30°S: -33° high at 9 pm 40°S JAN at 40°S: -10° high at 9 pm FEB at 40°S: 10° high at 9 pm MAR at 40°S: 30° high at 9 pm APR at 40°S: 53° high at 9 pm MAY at 40°S: 72° high at 9 pm JUN at 40°S: 66° high at 9 pm JUL at 40°S: 45° high at 9 pm AUG at 40°S: 21° high at 9 pm SEP at 40°S: -0° high at 9 pm OCT at 40°S: -17° high at 9 pm NOV at 40°S: -26° high at 9 pm DEC at 40°S: -24° 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 southern hemisphere and north to about 67°N, and never sets south of 67°S.

NGC 4993 is 128 million light-years away

The light seen from NGC 4993 tonight left it about 128 million years ago, long before modern humans existed. It ranks 253 of 422 by distance among the galaxies on Go Astronomy. Distance source: Cosmicflows-4 (Tully et al. 2023).

Objects within 6° of NGC 4993

No other Messier, Caldwell or Herschel 400 object lies within 6°.

NGC 4993 catalog data

FieldValue
DesignationsNGC 4994, ESO 508-018, PGC 45657, NGC 4993, AM 1307-230
Typelenticular galaxy (E-S0)
ConstellationHydra
Right ascension (J2000)13h 09.8m
Declination (J2000)-23° 23′
Magnitude13.4
Surface brightness23.2 mag/arcmin²
Apparent size1.6′ × 1.4′
True size57,700 light-years
Distance128 million light-years (Cosmicflows-4 (Tully et al. 2023))
Best monthMay
Best withTelescope