NGC 1964 is a barred spiral galaxy with a ring structure in the constellation Lepus. It was discovered on November 20, 1784, by William Herschel. It lies about 65 miljon light years from Earth giving it a diameter of about 100,000 light years.
The galaxy is ritch in details. First of all it contains a compact inner region with a bar and two tight spiral arms. The inner region is surrounded by a ring. From the ring two wider spiral arms emerge that contain several emission nebulae.
NGC 1964 is part of a group that also contains NGC 1979, IC 2138 and IC 2129 and may contain ESO 487-35 and ESO 555-22.
The detailed structure of NGC 1964 visually appears to be challenging. I, for example, didn't see any structure despite having observed it from quite a dark location in Spain. My notes read
"A large, oval glow with a bright inner region and a faint halo. There are a few faint stars to the north west and south east. No further structure seen."
and more observation logs exist of people that only saw a glow. However, there is a drawing of the ring and spiral structure using a 16" telescope on DeepSkyLog.org as well. I guess it very much depends on the transparency of the sky. I didn't try to observe the other members of the group. So, on both accounts, I am curious to know what you made or make of this galaxy! And if I get the chance, I will observe this galaxy from Chile using my 20" telescope at least once more.
As always,
"Give it a go and let us know!
Good luck and great viewing!"
Last edited by wvreeven; January 16th, 2022 at 07:03 PM.
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