astronomy

NGC 513

NGC 513 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 513 rather than just read about it. In short: NGC 513, also occasionally referred to as PGC 5174 or UGC 953, is a spiral galaxy in the constellation Andromeda. It is located approximately 262 million light-years from the Solar System and was discovered on 13 September 1784 by astronomer William Herschel.

Key takeaways

NGC 513 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 513 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NGC 513 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NGC 513, also occasionally referred to as PGC 5174 or UGC 953, is a spiral galaxy in the constellation Andromeda. It is located approximately 262 million light-years from the Solar System and was discovered on 13 September 1784 by astronomer William Herschel.

Observation history

Herschel discovered the object and simply noted "stellar". Therefore, the galaxy was probably mistaken for a star. Herschel discovered this galaxy along with many other objects on a single observation, using Beta Andromedae as a reference star. The position noted is correct and off only by approximately 30" from UGC 953, thus the objects are generally viewed as equivalents. John Louis Emil Dreyer, creator of the New General Catalogue, described the galaxy as "faint, small, stellar", still indicating the misidentification of NGC 513 as a star. One supernova has been observed in NGC 513: SN 2023jpp (type Ia, mag. 17.6).

Description The galaxy has an apparent size of 0.9 × 0.6 arcmins and a recessional velocity of approximately 5807 kilometers per second. The redshift of 0.01956 allows an estimate of the galaxy's distance using Hubble's law, which puts the object at roughly 260 million light-years from the Sun.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with NGC 513

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NGC 513 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 513 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 513 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 513

In research: NGC 513 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 513 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 513 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Andromeda (constellation), Astronomical objects discovered in 1784, Discoveries by William Herschel, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NGC 513 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 513 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NGC 513 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 513 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NGC 513 in simple terms?

Why does NGC 513 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 513?

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 513.