astronomy

NGC 3504

NGC 3504 is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand NGC 3504 rather than just read about it. In short: NGC 3504 is a barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Leo Minor. It has a Hubble distance corresponding to 88 million light-years and was discovered by German-British astronomer William Herschel on 11 April 1785.

Key takeaways

NGC 3504 belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect NGC 3504 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NGC 3504 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NGC 3504 is a barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Leo Minor. It has a Hubble distance corresponding to 88 million light-years and was discovered by German-British astronomer William Herschel on 11 April 1785. The luminosity class of NGC 3504 is I-II, with a broad HI line containing regions of ionized hydrogen. Additionally, it is classified as a starburst galaxy. There is a large amount of molecular gas centered on the galactic nucleus. Compared with other barred spiral galaxies, NGC 3504 is in an early phase of its evolution.

Morphology NGC 3504 is classified as a type (R1')SAB(rs)ab galaxy. It has a bright point-like nucleus embedded inside its galactic budge that is crossed by a thin bar. It has spiral arms found wrapping around its inner ring which then peels off to form an outer, broken pseudo-ring. The galaxy shows little evidence of star formation.

Star-forming disk According to Hubble Space Telescope, a star-forming disk has been found around the nucleus of NGC 3504, which the size of the disk's axis is estimated to be 200 pc (~650 light years).

Mass The mass of NGC 3504 has been difficult to narrow down, but it is believed to be between 2.5*109 M⊙ and 9*109 M⊙.

Supermassive black hole The supermassive black hole in NGC 3504 is estimated to be 107.8 M○ (or 63 million solar masses), according to near-infrared K-band brightness measurements for the galaxy's budge.

Supernovae Two supernovae have been observed in NGC 3504:

SN 1998cf (type unknown, mag. 15) was discovered in March 1998 by Eric Emsellem via CCD images captured at Canada-France-Hawaii Observatory and also by Karl Gordon and Geoffrey Clayton from Louisiana State University. SN 2001ac (type gap, mag. 18.2) was discovered by LOTOSS (Lick Observatory and Tenagra Observatory Supernova Searches) on 12 March 2001. This supernova was initially thought to be Type IIn or a luminous blue variable, but later analysis concluded that it was a calcium-rich supernova, sometimes referred to as a "gap" transient.

NGC 3504 group NGC 3504 is the brightest member of the NGC 3504 Group (also known as LGG 227), which is a member of the Leo II Groups, a series of galaxies and galaxy clusters strung out from the right edge of the Virgo Supercluster. There are eight other galaxies in the group including NGC 3380, NGC 3400, NGC 3414, NGC 3451, NGC 3512, UGC 5921 and UGC 5958. This NGC 3504 group is also mentioned by Abraham Mahtessian in his research paper published in 1998.

References

External links Media related to NGC 3504 at Wikimedia Commons

NGC 3504 on WikiSky: DSS2, SDSS, GALEX, IRAS, Hydrogen α, X-Ray, Astrophoto, Sky Map, Articles and images

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with NGC 3504

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NGC 3504 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to NGC 3504 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about NGC 3504 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of NGC 3504

In research: NGC 3504 appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses NGC 3504 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: NGC 3504 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Astronomical objects discovered in 1785, Barred spiral galaxies, Discoveries by William Herschel, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NGC 3504 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study NGC 3504 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NGC 3504 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain NGC 3504 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NGC 3504 in simple terms?

Why does NGC 3504 matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study NGC 3504?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on NGC 3504.