astronomy

NGC 4051

NGC 4051 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 4051 rather than just read about it. In short: NGC 4051 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation of Ursa Major. It was discovered on 6 February 1788 by William Herschel.

Key takeaways

NGC 4051 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 4051 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NGC 4051 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NGC 4051 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation of Ursa Major. It was discovered on 6 February 1788 by William Herschel. NGC 4051 contains a supermassive black hole with a mass of 1.73 million M☉. This galaxy was studied by the Multicolor Active Galactic Nuclei Monitoring 2m telescope.

The galaxy is a Seyfert galaxy that emits bright X-rays. However, in early 1998 the X-ray emission ceased as observed by the Beppo-SAX satellite. X-ray emission had risen back to normal by August 1998. NGC 4051 is a member of the Ursa Major Cluster. Its peculiar velocity is −490 ± 34 km/s, consistent with the rest of the cluster. It is a member of the NGC 4111 Group, which is part of the Ursa Major Cloud and is the second largest group in the cloud after the NGC 3992 Group.

Supernovae Three supernovae have been discovered in NGC 4051:

SN 1983I (Type Ic, mag. 13.5) was discovered independently by J. Kielkopf et al, on 11 May 1983, and by Tsvetkov on 12 May 1983. SN 2003ie (Type II, mag. 15.2) was discovered by Ron Arbour on 19 September 2003. SN 2010br (Type Ib/c, mag. 17.7) was discovered by Vitali Nevski on 10 April 2010.

References

Notes

External links

NGC 4051 on WikiSky: DSS2, SDSS, GALEX, IRAS, Hydrogen α, X-Ray, Astrophoto, Sky Map, Articles and images SN 2010br located 19".5 east and 10" south of the center at 12 03 10.96 +44 31 42.8 / Wikisky DSS2 zoom-in of same region

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with NGC 4051

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NGC 4051 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 4051 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 4051 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 4051

In research: NGC 4051 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 4051 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 4051 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Intermediate spiral galaxies, NGC 4111 Group, NGC objects, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NGC 4051 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 4051 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NGC 4051 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 4051 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NGC 4051 in simple terms?

NGC 4051 is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation of Ursa Major. It was discovered on 6 February 1788 by William Herschel.

Why does NGC 4051 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 4051?

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 4051.