Caldwell 101

Caldwell 101

Caldwell 101 is a spiral galaxy located in the southern constellation Pavo, approximately 30 million light-years away from Earth. It is also known as NGC 6744 and is considered one of the most Milky Way-like spiral galaxies in our immediate vicinity. The galaxy is larger than the Milky Way, with a diameter of more than 200,000 light-years. Its disk is tilted relative to our line of sight, providing a stunning view of its starry spiral arms.

Caldwell 101 was discovered by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop in 1826. It is similar to the Milky Way in many ways, with a yellowish core dominated by old, cool stars and spiral arms that are littered with dust and regions of active star formation. The galaxy has at least one distorted companion galaxy, NGC 6744A, which is similar to one of the Magellanic Clouds.

In small telescopes, Caldwell 101 appears as a faint, extended object with a bright core, and it has a magnitude of 8.6. It is best viewed in the winter from the Southern Hemisphere, while Northern Hemisphere observers will need to be located near the equator and look for it during the summer months.