When is the best time to observe NGC 1781?

NGC 1781 is best observed from November through January, with peak visibility during December when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is NGC 1781 located in the sky?

NGC 1781 lies in the constellation Lepus at right ascension 05h 08m and declination -18° 11′.

What telescope do I need to see NGC 1781?

At magnitude 12.9, NGC 1781 is a challenging target that needs at least an 8-inch (200 mm) telescope and dark skies.

NGC 1781 — Galaxy in Lepus

Galaxy Fair (28/100)

Lenticular

Magnitude 12.9^m Galaxy Lepus (Lep) Visible

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1Properties

Magnitude 12.87

Angular Size 1.3′ × 1.1′

Position Angle 76°

Galaxy Type Lenticular (S0)

Description

eF, vS, stellar; = 1794

Position & Identifiers

RA 05h 07m 55.0s

Dec -18° 11' 23.6"

Constellation Lepus (Lep)

Catalog NGC 1781

2How easy to spot?

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

NGC 1781 · 1.3′×1.1′ · N up, E left

5 Best Magnification

Explore

6 Surface Brightness

7 Morphology Decoder

8 Inclination & True Shape

9 Redshift

10 Size Comparator

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.

Mu Lep

Hard+

Variable star, range 3.0–3.4

Variable Star mag 3.31 2.3° Lepus

Kappa Lep

Medium

Tight double — a rewarding split at 2.0″

Double Star mag 4.36 5.4° Lepus

NGC 1784

Hard+

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 11.8 6.3° Lepus

NGC 1964

Medium+

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 10.8 7.1° Lepus

NGC 1725

Hard+

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 13.0 7.4° Eridanus

M79

NGC 1904

Easy

Globular cluster — dense ball of ancient stars

Globular Cluster mag 8.0 7.4° Lepus

NGC 1888

Hard+

Barred spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.0 7.6° Lepus

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