When is the best time to observe NGC 3257?

NGC 3257 is best observed from January through March, with peak visibility during February when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is NGC 3257 located in the sky?

NGC 3257 lies in the constellation Antlia at right ascension 10h 29m and declination -35° 39′.

What telescope do I need to see NGC 3257?

At magnitude 13.1, NGC 3257 is a challenging target that needs at least an 8-inch (200 mm) telescope and dark skies.

NGC 3257 — Galaxy in Antlia

Galaxy Fair (29/100)

Elliptical

Magnitude 13.1^m Galaxy Antlia (Ant) Visible

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1Properties

Magnitude 13.12

Angular Size 1.1′ × 0.9′

Position Angle 170°

Distance 149.91 million ly

Galaxy Type Elliptical (E-S0)

Description

vF, vS, R, psbM, 1st of 4

Position & Identifiers

RA 10h 28m 47.1s

Dec -35° 39' 29.2"

Constellation Antlia (Ant)

Catalog NGC 3257

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 Jan – Mar (peak: Feb)

4 Eyepiece View

Telescope Eyepiece

125x TFOV: 0.4° Lim. mag: 13.6

Seeing Bortle

NGC 3257 · 1.1′×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

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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 3258

Medium

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 11.7 0.1° Antlia

NGC 3260

Hard+

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.67 0.1° Antlia

NGC 3268

Medium

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 11.8 0.4° Antlia

NGC 3271

Medium

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 11.7 0.5° Antlia

U Ant

Easy

Deep red carbon star

Star mag 5.38 4.1° Antlia

Eight Burst Nebula

NGC 3132

Easy

Small bright planetary nebula

Planetary Nebula mag 8.0 6.4° Vela

AG Ant

Medium

Variable star, range 5.3–5.7

Variable Star mag 5.34 7.0° Antlia

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