NGC 604

NGC 604
A Hubble Space Telescope (HST) image of NGC 604. Credit: HST/NASA/ESA.
Observation data: J2000.0 epoch
Type	Emission
Right ascension	01h 34m 33.2s[1]
Declination	+30° 47′ 06″[1]
Distance	2.7 Mly (840 kpc)[2] (extra-galactic)
Apparent magnitude (V)	+14.0 [1]
Apparent dimensions (V)	1′.93 x 1′.2 arcmins[1]
Constellation	Triangulum
Physical characteristics
Radius	760 ly [3]
Absolute magnitude (V)	-13.8
Notable features	massive H II region
See also: Diffuse nebula, Lists of nebulae
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NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope provides the sharpest view of NGC 604 so far obtained.

NGC 604 is a H II region inside the Triangulum Galaxy. It was discovered by William Herschel on September 11, 1784. It is one of the largest H II regions in the Local Group of galaxies; at the galaxy's estimated distance of 2.7 million light-years its longest diameter is roughly 1500 light-years (460 parsecs), over 40 times the size of the visible portion of the Orion Nebula. It is over 6300 times more luminous than the Orion Nebula, and if it were at the same distance it would outshine Venus. Like all emission nebulae, its gas is ionized by a cluster of massive stars at its center.^[4]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} "NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database". Results for NGC 604. http://nedwww.ipac.caltech.edu/. Retrieved 2006-09-03. 
2. ^ Barba, Rodolfo (2004). "An in-depth analysis of a prototypical giant H II region: NGC 604". HST Proposal ID #10419. Bibcode 2004hst..prop.6732B. 
3. ^ distance × sin( diameter_angle / 2 ) = 760 ly. radius
4. ^ "Astronomy Picture of the Day, November 2, 2000 NGC 604: Giant Stellar Nursery". NASA. http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap021102.html. 

• Some data in the table was updated from Sue French's column "Deep-sky Wonders", in the January 2006 issue of Sky & Telescope, p. 83.

External links

• Nebula NGC 604 @ SEDS Messier pages
• NASA APOD: NGC 604 - August 16, 1996