When is the best time to observe NGC 3003?

NGC 3003 is best observed from January through March, with peak visibility during February when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is NGC 3003 located in the sky?

NGC 3003 lies in the constellation Leo Minor at right ascension 09h 49m and declination +33° 25′.

What telescope do I need to see NGC 3003?

At magnitude 11.7, NGC 3003 is best observed with a 6-inch (150 mm) or larger telescope.

NGC 3003 — Galaxy in Leo Minor

Galaxy Good (56/100)

Barred Spiral

Magnitude 11.7^m Galaxy Leo Minor (LMi) Visible

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1Properties

Magnitude 11.7

Angular Size 4.7′ × 1.1′

Position Angle 79°

Distance 68.86 million ly

Galaxy Type Barred Spiral (Sbc)

Description

! cB, L, vmE 90deg

Position & Identifiers

RA 09h 48m 36.0s

Dec +33° 25' 00.0"

Constellation Leo Minor (LMi)

Catalog NGC 3003

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

Easy on Seestar S50

3Visibility

Set a location in User Settings to see visibility data.

Best season Jan – Mar (peak: Feb)

4 Eyepiece View

Telescope Eyepiece

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125x TFOV: 0.4° Lim. mag: 13.6

Seeing Bortle

NGC 3003 · 4.7′×1.1′ · 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 2964

Medium

Barred spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 11.3 2.0° Leo

NGC 3067

Hard+

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 11.7 2.3° Leo

NGC 2918

Hard+

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 13.0 3.2° Leo

NGC 3032

Medium

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 11.9 4.2° Leo

38 Lyn

Medium+

Tight double — a rewarding split at 2.6″

Double Star mag 3.82 7.0° Lynx

RS Cnc

Easy

Semi-regular variable, range 5.3–6.9

Variable Star mag 5.95 8.4° Cancer

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