M 105

M105 is the brightest elliptical galaxy in the Leo I or M96 group of galaxies, and as such approximately 38 million light years distant. It is of type E1, and often studied as a typical representative of elliptical galaxies (e.g., J.D. Wray's Color Atlas of Galaxies states: "This elliptical galaxy is a photometric standard for surface brightness distribution," and mentions the uniformity of color over the entire range of luminosity).

M105 is the bright elliptical at left in our image. Below and right of center is NGC 3384, while the galaxy in the upper right is NGC 3389. This is also the order of increasing difficulty.

M105 was discovered by Pierre Mechain on March 24, 1781, even 3 days earlier than M101, but not included in Messier's list. This additional object was included by H.S. Hogg in 1947.

Right ascension	10 : 45.2 (hours : minutes)
Declination	+12 : 51 (degrees : minutes)
Distance	25000.0 (light-years*10^3)
Visual magnitude	9.2