When is the best time to observe NGC 4102?

NGC 4102 is best observed from February through April, with peak visibility during March when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is NGC 4102 located in the sky?

NGC 4102 lies in the constellation Ursa Major at right ascension 12h 06m and declination +52° 43′.

What telescope do I need to see NGC 4102?

At magnitude 12.0, NGC 4102 is best observed with a 6-inch (150 mm) or larger telescope.

NGC 4102 — Galaxy in Ursa Major

Galaxy Good (48/100)

Barred Spiral

Magnitude 12.0^m Galaxy Ursa Major (UMa) Visible

Star Map + List + Plan Star Hop

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1Properties

Magnitude 12.0

Angular Size 2.9′ × 1.7′

Position Angle 37°

Distance 39.53 million ly

Galaxy Type Barred Spiral (SABb)

Description

B, pS, R, bMBN, *12 sp, vnr

Position & Identifiers

RA 12h 06m 24.0s

Dec +52° 43' 00.0"

Constellation Ursa Major (UMa)

Catalog NGC 4102

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.	Medium	Hard+	Hard
Celestron C8 (203 mm SCT) C8 203mm	Medium+	Medium	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 Feb – Apr (peak: Mar)

4 Eyepiece View

Telescope Eyepiece

125x TFOV: 0.4° Lim. mag: 13.6

Seeing Bortle

NGC 4102 · 2.9′×1.7′ · N up, E left

5 Best Magnification

Explore

6 Surface Brightness

7 Morphology Decoder

8 Inclination & True Shape

9 Redshift

10 Size Comparator

Discover

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.

NGC 4026

Medium

Edge-on galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.0 2.1° Ursa Major

Phad

HIP 58001; Gamma Ursae Majoris; 64 Ursae Majoris

Easy

Bright naked-eye star, mag 2.4

Star mag 2.44 2.1° Ursa Major

NGC 4194

Hard+

Barred spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.4 2.1° Ursa Major

NGC 4088

Medium+

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 10.5 2.2° Ursa Major

NGC 4157

Medium

Edge-on galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.0 2.3° Ursa Major

Z UMa

Easy

Mira-type variable, range 6.2–9.7

Variable Star mag 6.20 5.3° Ursa Major

M97

Owl Nebula

Hard+

Planetary nebula — try an OIII filter

Planetary Nebula mag 9.9 7.9° Ursa Major

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