Description
Overview:
The Whirlpool Galaxy is a galaxy which is located inside the constellation Canes Venatici at the coordinates RA 13 29.9 and Declination 47 12.
It is 37,000,000 light years from the planet Earth making it the 86th furthest Messier Object from Earth. It has an angular size of 11 x 7 arc minutes.
Designation:
The Whirlpool Galaxy is one of twelve galaxies included in Charles Messier's Catalog of deep sky objects. It is known by the Messier number M51. It has an NGC catalog number of NGC 5194.
Discoverer:
The Whirlpool Galaxy was discovered by the astronomer Charles Messier in 1773.
Brightness:
Compared to other galaxies, Whirlpool Galaxy is a relatively bright galaxy with a visual magnitude of 8.4.
