From the National Optical Astronomical Observatories
M106 (NGC 4258) is a Sb spiral galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici. More edge-on than not, at a similar inclination to M31, its prominent dust lanes trace spiral structure back almost to its nucleus. M106 is around 25 million light years away and may be a member of a loose galaxy grouping which includes M108 and M109, although some have placed it in a different group. A somewhat peculiar spiral, sometimes considered to have hints of a bar, M106 is also a Seyfert galaxy, showing strong emission lines in spectra of its nucleus. This full color image was created from nine images taken in the BVR passbands at the Burrell Schmidt telescope of Case Western Reserve University's Warner and Swasey Observatory located on Kitt Peak, near Tucson, Arizona.
Image Title: The Sb Spiral Galaxy M106
N.A.Sharp, REU program/AURA/NOAO/NSF (for details see Copyright Statement)
Text based on accompanying on-line materials.
Last Modified On: Sunday, December 17, 2000