Magellanic-type galaxy · Leo Minor
NGC 3432 Knitting Needle Galaxy
mag 11.37.4′ across
About
NGC 3432, the Knitting Needle Galaxy, is a Magellanic-type galaxy of magnitude 11.3 in Leo Minor, about 7.4′ across.
How to find it
- NGC 3432 is in the constellation Leo Minor.
- Best evenings: around mid-April 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 43° 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 thin spindle of light.
For a dark country sky with no Moon. From a city, faint galaxies and nebulae can disappear completely.
Facts
| Designations | NGC 3432, PGC 32643, UGC 5986 |
|---|---|
| Type | Magellanic-type galaxy (SBm) |
| Magnitude | 11.3The smaller the number, the brighter. |
| Apparent size | 7.4′ × 2.1′position angle 33°; the full Moon is 31′ across |
| Surface brightness | 23.6 mag/arcsec²Average over its disc, in the blue band: the lower the number, the easier it is to see. |
| Constellation | Leo Minor |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 10h 52m 31.1s |
| Declination (J2000) | +36° 37′ 08″ |
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 →