NGC 4660 explained

NGC 4660
Epoch:J2000
Type:E5[1]
Dist Ly:19.2Mpc
Group Cluster:Virgo Cluster
H Radial V:1083 km/s
Z:0.003612
Appmag V:12.16
Size V:2.2 x 1.6
Constellation Name:Virgo
Names:CGCG 71-23, MCG 2-33-6, PGC 42917, UGC 7914, VCC 2000
Size:~12.1kpc (estimated)

NGC 4660 is an elliptical galaxy located about 63 million light-years away[2] in the constellation Virgo.[3] The galaxy was discovered by astronomer William Herschel on March 15, 1784[4] and is a member of the Virgo Cluster.[5] [6]

NGC 4660 forms a tight pair with Messier 59.[7]

Tidal filament

A long tidal filament was detected associated with NGC 4660. This appears to indicate a past gravitational interaction with another galaxy. The progenitor galaxy that may have produced the filament associated with NGC 4660 was a gas-rich spiral. Alternatively, the detection of tidal dwarf galaxies (TDGs) which are “recycled” low-mass galaxies formed from interactions or mergers[8] suggest that the filament originated from a possible satellite galaxy that got stripped during its closest approach in its orbit to NGC 4660. This would make the filament a tidal stream comparable to the stream associated with the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy of the Milky Way.

Supermassive black hole

NGC 4660 may have a supermassive black hole with an estimated mass of 800 million suns (M☉).[9]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database . Results for NGC 4660 . 2018-04-07.
  2. Web site: Your NED Search Results. ned.ipac.caltech.edu. 2018-04-07.
  3. Web site: NGC 4660 in the Virgo cluster of galaxies. www.spacetelescope.org. en-GB. 2018-04-07.
  4. Web site: New General Catalog Objects: NGC 4650 - 4699. cseligman.com. en-US. 2018-04-05.
  5. Binggeli. B.. Sandage. A.. Tammann. G. A.. 1985-09-01. Studies of the Virgo Cluster. II - A catalog of 2096 galaxies in the Virgo Cluster area.. 1985AJ.....90.1681B. The Astronomical Journal. 90. 1681–1759. 10.1086/113874. 0004-6256.
  6. Kemp. S. N.. Martínez-Robles. C.. Márquez-Lugo. R. A.. Zepeda-García. D.. Franco-Hernández. R.. A. Nigoche-Netro. Ramos-Larios. G.. Navarro. S. G.. Corral. L. J.. 2016. The Tidal Filament of NGC 4660. The Astrophysical Journal. en. 830. 2. 66. 10.3847/0004-637x/830/2/66. 0004-637X. 1607.04670. 2016ApJ...830...66K. 118805307 . free .
  7. Mamon. G. A.. 2008-07-01. The nature of the nearest compact group of galaxies from precise distance measurements. Astronomy & Astrophysics. en. 486. 1. 113–117. 10.1051/0004-6361:200809827. 0004-6361. 0803.3181. 2008A&A...486..113M. 3994849.
  8. Web site: Galaxy Recycling: the Origins of Tidal Dwarf Galaxies Department of Astronomy. astronomy.case.edu. 22 September 2015 . en-US. 2018-04-08.
  9. Pechetti. Renuka. Seth. Anil. Cappellari. Michele. McDermid. Richard. Brok. Mark den. Mieske. Steffen. Strader. Jay. 2017-11-13. Detection of Enhanced Central Mass-to-light Ratios in Low-mass Early-type Galaxies: Evidence for Black Holes?. The Astrophysical Journal. 850. 1. 15. 10.3847/1538-4357/aa9021. 1538-4357. 1709.09172. 2017ApJ...850...15P. 119357906 . free .

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