Barred spiral galaxy · Camelopardalis
NGC 2146 Dusty Hand Galaxy
mag 10.75.3′ across
About
NGC 2146, the Dusty Hand Galaxy, is a barred spiral galaxy of magnitude 10.7 in Camelopardalis, about 5.3′ across.
How to find it
- NGC 2146 is in the constellation Camelopardalis.
- Best evenings: around early February it is highest at about 9 pm (10 pm in summer time); a month earlier, two hours later.
- Where on Earth: it is seen well, at least 10° up, from north of 2° S.
When it rises and sets tonight, how high it climbs and how much the Moon gets in the way are worked out in your browser for your place.
What you will see
- EyesNot visible to the naked eye.
- Binoculars (10×50)Too faint for binoculars.
- Telescope (6–8 inch)A faint oval glow with a brighter middle — no spiral arms without a camera.
For a dark country sky with no Moon. From a city, faint galaxies and nebulae can disappear completely.
Facts
| Designations | NGC 2146, PGC 18797, UGC 3429 |
|---|---|
| Type | Barred spiral galaxy (SBab) |
| Magnitude | 10.7The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Apparent size | 5.3′ × 4.3′position angle 123°; the full Moon is 31′ across |
| Surface brightness | 22.8 mag/arcsec²Average over its disc, in the blue band: the lower the number, the easier it is to see. |
| Constellation | Camelopardalis |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 06h 18m 37.7s |
| Declination (J2000) | +78° 21′ 25″ |
Sources and credits
Catalog data: OpenNGC by Mattia Verga, CC BY-SA 4.0, and d3-celestial by Olaf Frohn, BSD 3-Clause. All data sources →