When is the best time to observe NGC 1989?

NGC 1989 is best observed from November through January, with peak visibility during December when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is NGC 1989 located in the sky?

NGC 1989 lies in the constellation Columba at right ascension 05h 34m and declination -30° 48′.

What telescope do I need to see NGC 1989?

At magnitude 13.3, NGC 1989 is a challenging target that needs at least an 8-inch (200 mm) telescope and dark skies.

NGC 1989 — Galaxy in Columba

Galaxy Fair (25/100)

Elliptical

Magnitude 13.3^m Galaxy Columba (Col) Visible

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1Properties

Magnitude 13.28

Angular Size 1.7′ × 1.2′

Position Angle 93°

Distance 500.88 million ly

Galaxy Type Elliptical (E-S0)

Description

vF, S, R, lbM, st nr

Position & Identifiers

RA 05h 34m 24.0s

Dec -30° 48' 00.0"

Constellation Columba (Col)

Catalog NGC 1989

2How easy to spot?

Telescope	Bortle 3	Bortle 4	Bortle 5
80 mm refractor 80mm refr.	V. 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 1989 · 1.7′×1.2′ · 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

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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.

Mu Col

Easy

Hot blue O-type star

Star mag 5.17 2.9° Columba

NGC 2090

Medium

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.0 4.4° Columba

NGC 1800

Hard

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.6 6.1° Columba

M79

NGC 1904

Easy

Globular cluster — dense ball of ancient stars

Globular Cluster mag 7.7 6.7° Lepus

IC 2122

Hard

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 13.08 7.0° Columba

IC 2158

Hard+

Barred spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.06 7.4° Columba

Gamma Cae

Medium

Easy double, sep 3.2″

Double Star mag 4.55 7.8° Caelum

S Lep

Easy

Semi-regular variable, range 6.0–7.6

Variable Star mag 6.95 9.6° Lepus

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