Vaonis Vespera - Virgo, Coma Berenices

Introduction | DSO in Virgo | DSO in Coma Berenices | Links

Archive

On my Vespera constellation pages I present objects that are located in the corresponding constellations. This page shows DSO in the constellations Virgo and Coma Berenices.

Note: As I sold my Vespera in June 2024, no more new photos will be added.

Constellation pages: Orion, Taurus, Monoceros, Eridanus - Gemini, Auriga - Cassiopeia - Cygnus, Lyra, Vulpecula, Sagitta - Andromeda, Triangulum, Perseus - Cepheus - Leo, Cancer - Virgo, Coma Berenices

Introduction

On my Vespera constellation pages I present objects that are located in the corresponding constellations. These pages are intended to help you see neighboring DSOs in context. In the case of several constellations, these lie next to each other so that the photos cover a coherent area of the sky.

This page shows DSO in the constellations Virgo und Coma Berenices. More photos can be found on the DSO detail pages (click the corresponding link).

There are galaxy clusters in these two constellations, so that the photos are more like search images than showing details of the DSO. I therefore include evaluations of the photos with nova.astrometry.net where appropriate.

Note: Where possible, I selected photos on which several objects can be seen at the same time.

Overview of the sky region (Image Courtesy of SkySafari Astronomy, www.simulationcurriculum.com)

Virgo Galaxy Cluster (Wikipedia)

DSO in Virgo

M 58, M 87 (Virgo A, Center of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster), M 89, and M 90 (und many further Small Galaxies)


M 58 - Jun 9, 2023, 6970s, mosaic, original		M 58 - evaluation by astrometry.net, large

M 58 left 1/3 from bottom, M 87 right center, M 89 left 1/3 from top, M 90 top left; NGC 4567/68 (Siamese Twins/Butterfly Galaxies) at the bottom left; for details use the large evaluation

M 84, M 86 (Great Galactic Face, Markarian's Chain)


Markarian's Chain - May 18, 2023, mosaic, original		Ditto, processed with DeNoise, large

Evaluation with Nova.astrometry.net		Evaluation with Nova.astrometry.net, large

According to the Stellarium application, M 84 and M 86 also form, together with NGC 4387 and NGC 4388, the "Great Galactic Face".

Member galaxies of Markarian's Chain, which forms the core of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster, include M 84 (NGC 4374), M 86 (NGC 4406), NGC 4477, NGC 4473, NGC 4461, NGC 4458 (not always assigned to the chain...), NGC 4438, and NGC 4435 (NGC 4438 and NGC 4435 are "The Eyes").

DSO in Coma Berenices

M 99 and M 100


M 99 with M 100, Jun 8, 2023 - original, 3600s, mosaic		M 99 with M 100, Jun 8, 2023 - large, 3600s, mosaic, processed

		Evaluation with nova.astrometry.net, large

Further galaxies: IC 781, IC 783, IC 3177, IC 3238, IC 3244, NGC 4262, NGC 4298, NGC 4302, NGC 4322, NGC 4223, NGC 4328, NGC 4312

NGC 4889 (Coma Galaxy Cluster)


NGC 4889, Aug 20 2022 - original (89 frames = 890 seconds)		NGC 4889, Aug 20, 2022 - original, processed (89 frames = 890 seconds)

NGC 4889 and NGC 4874 (lower right) marked		Evaluation with nova.astrometry.net - large

NGC 4889 is an elliptical galaxy in the constellation Coma Berenices; it is very large and old and lies almost in the center of the Coma Galaxy Cluster (it is the largest galaxy in this cluster). Together with the elliptical galaxy NGC 4874 (also very large), it dominates the gravitational field of the galaxy cluster. The two star systems are very old and probably formed from the merger of several small spiral galaxies.

The Coma Galaxy Cluster is a huge collection of over 1000 galaxies that occupy an angle of about 3° × 5° in the constellation of Coma Berenices. Due to its relative proximity, it has played a major role in the study of the large-scale distribution of galaxies and bears the designation Abell 1656 in the catalog of the astronomer George Ogden Abell.

In the sky just to the south is the much closer Virgo cluster, which is 15-20 Mpc away. However, it was only possible to identify individual galaxies in its background a few decades ago.