astronomy

NGC 4615

NGC 4615 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 4615 rather than just read about it. In short: NGC 4615 is a spiral galaxy in the constellation of Coma Berenices. Its velocity with respect to the cosmic microwave background is 5,022±20 km/s, which corresponds to a Hubble distance of 241.6 ± 16.9 Mly (74.07 ± 5.19 Mpc).

Key takeaways

NGC 4615 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 4615 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NGC 4615 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NGC 4615 is a spiral galaxy in the constellation of Coma Berenices. Its velocity with respect to the cosmic microwave background is 5,022±20 km/s, which corresponds to a Hubble distance of 241.6 ± 16.9 Mly (74.07 ± 5.19 Mpc). However, one non-redshift measurement gives a much closer distance of 213 Mly (65.4 Mpc). It was discovered by German astronomer Heinrich d'Arrest on 9 May 1864.

NGC 4615 is listed in Halton Arp's Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies as Arp 34, as an example of a galaxy that looks like a stretched-out S shape. NGC 4615 and NGC 4614 are listed together as Holm 439 in Erik Holmberg's A Study of Double and Multiple Galaxies Together with Inquiries into some General Metagalactic Problems, published in 1937. This grouping was also listed by A. P. Mahtessian in a paper published in 1998.

Supernovae Two supernovae have been observed in NGC 4615:

SN 1987F (Type II-P, mag. 15.8) was discovered independently by Natalya Metlova on 22 April 1987, and by Thomas Schildknecht on 23 April 1987. SN 2025nzi (Type Ib, mag. 19.016) was discovered by ATLAS on 18 June 2025.

See also List of NGC objects (4001–5000)

References

External links Media related to NGC 4615 at Wikimedia Commons NGC 4615 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 4615

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NGC 4615 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 4615 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 4615 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 4615

In research: NGC 4615 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 4615 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 4615 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Arp objects, Astronomical objects discovered in 1864, Coma Berenices, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NGC 4615 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.

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study NGC 4615 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NGC 4615 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 4615 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NGC 4615 in simple terms?

Why does NGC 4615 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 4615?

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 4615.