When is the best time to observe IC 2163?

IC 2163 is best observed from November through January, with peak visibility during December when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is IC 2163 located in the sky?

IC 2163 lies in the constellation Canis Major at right ascension 06h 16m and declination -21° 23′.

What telescope do I need to see IC 2163?

At magnitude 11.1, IC 2163 is best observed with a 6-inch (150 mm) or larger telescope.

IC 2163 — Galaxy in Canis Major

Galaxy Fair (36/100)

Spiral

Magnitude 11.1^m Galaxy Canis Major (CMa) Visible

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1Properties

Magnitude 11.11

Angular Size 3.4′ × 0.9′

Position Angle 103°

Distance 129.43 million ly

Galaxy Type Spiral (Sc)

Description

eF, pS, 2207 p 7s

Position & Identifiers

RA 06h 16m 28.0s

Dec -21° 22' 33.2"

Constellation Canis Major (CMa)

Catalog IC 2163

2How easy to spot?

Telescope	Bortle 3	Bortle 4	Bortle 5
80 mm refractor 80mm refr.	V. hard	Imp.	Imp.
150 mm Newton 150mm Newt.	Hard	V. hard+	V. hard
Celestron C8 (203 mm SCT) C8 203mm	Hard	Hard	V. hard+

Easy Medium Hard Very hard Impossible

Bortle 3 = rural · 4 = outer suburbs · 5 = suburbs

Medium on Seestar S50

3Visibility

Set a location in User Settings to see visibility data.

Best season Nov – Jan (peak: Dec)

4 Eyepiece View

Telescope Eyepiece

125x TFOV: 0.4° Lim. mag: 13.6

Seeing Bortle

IC 2163 · 3.4′×0.9′ · N up, E left

5 Best Magnification

Explore

6 Surface Brightness

7 Morphology Decoder

8 Inclination & True Shape

9 Redshift

10 Size Comparator

Discover

Light Travel Time Machine

Relativistic Travel

Nearby in the Sky

Other targets within a few degrees — pan your scope a little and keep exploring.

Visibility scores assume a 150 mm Newton at Bortle 4.

NGC 2179

Hard+

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.5 2.0° Lepus

NGC 2204

Easy

Open cluster

Open Cluster mag 8.6 2.7° Canis Major

Double Star mag 1.98 3.7° Canis Major

S Lep

Easy

Semi-regular variable, range 6.0–7.6

Variable Star mag 6.95 3.7° Lepus

IC 2152

Hard

Barred spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.64 4.7° Lepus

NGC 2217

Easy

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 10.4 6.0° Canis Major

IC 2158

Hard+

Barred spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.06 7.0° Columba

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