When is the best time to observe NGC 1638?

NGC 1638 is best observed from October through December, with peak visibility during November when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is NGC 1638 located in the sky?

NGC 1638 lies in the constellation Eridanus at right ascension 04h 42m and declination -01° 49′.

What telescope do I need to see NGC 1638?

At magnitude 12.1, NGC 1638 is a challenging target that needs at least an 8-inch (200 mm) telescope and dark skies.

NGC 1638 — Galaxy in Eridanus

Galaxy Fair (33/100)

Lenticular

Magnitude 12.1^m Galaxy Eridanus (Eri) Visible

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1Properties

Magnitude 12.1

Angular Size 2.1′ × 1.3′

Position Angle 67°

Distance 156.60 million ly

Galaxy Type Lenticular (S0)

Description

F, pL, lE

Position & Identifiers

RA 04h 41m 36.0s

Dec -01° 49' 00.0"

Constellation Eridanus (Eri)

Catalog NGC 1638

2How easy to spot?

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

Easy Medium Hard Very hard Impossible

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

Medium on Seestar S50

3Visibility

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Best season Oct – Dec (peak: Nov)

4 Eyepiece View

Telescope Eyepiece

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125x TFOV: 0.4° Lim. mag: 13.6

Seeing Bortle

NGC 1638 · 2.1′×1.3′ · N up, E left

5 Best Magnification

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6 Surface Brightness

7 Morphology Decoder

8 Inclination & True Shape

9 Redshift

10 Size Comparator

Discover

11

Light Travel Time Machine

12

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 1653

Hard+

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 13.0 1.2° Eridanus

NGC 1622

Hard+

Edge-on galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.3 1.9° Eridanus

NGC 1684

Hard+

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 13.0 3.0° Orion

NGC 1671

Hard

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.88 3.4° Orion

NGC 1788

Medium+

Reflection nebula around a bright star

Reflection Nebula mag 5.80 6.5° Orion

W Ori

Easy

Semi-regular variable, range 5.5–6.9

Variable Star mag 6.17 6.7° Orion

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