astronomy

NGC 545

NGC 545 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 545 rather than just read about it. In short: NGC 545 is a lenticular galaxy located in the constellation Cetus. It is located at a distance of about 250 million light years from Earth, which, given its apparent dimensions, means that NGC 545 is about 180,000 light years across.

Key takeaways

NGC 545 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 545 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NGC 545 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NGC 545 is a lenticular galaxy located in the constellation Cetus. It is located at a distance of about 250 million light years from Earth, which, given its apparent dimensions, means that NGC 545 is about 180,000 light years across. It was discovered by German-British astronomer William Herschel on October 1, 1785. It is a member of the Abell 194 galaxy cluster and is included along with NGC 547 in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies. A weak radio source with radio jets has been associated with NGC 545. The short jet crosses the much more prominent jet of NGC 547. Observations of the centre of the galaxy by Hubble Space Telescope did not reveal the presence of dust or disk features. In the centre of the galaxy is believed to exist a supermassive black hole whose mass is estimated to be about 600 million (108.79) M☉ based on the stellar tidal disruption rate. NGC 545 forms a pair with the equally bright NGC 547, which lies 0.5 arcminutes away. They share a common envelope, however, despite their close position, no tidal features like tails or bridges have been observed. A stellar bridge has been detected between the galaxy pair and NGC 541, which lies 4.5 arcminutes to the southwest (projected distance circa 100 kpc). Observations of the galaxy by the Chandra X-Ray Observatory revealed sharp surface brightness edges on the northeastern part of the galaxy and an extended tail in the soft band. It has been presumed that these are the result of motion of NGC 545 towards the centre of the cluster that has been identified as the location of NGC 547.

References

External links

NGC 545 on WikiSky: DSS2, SDSS, GALEX, IRAS, Hydrogen α, X-Ray, Astrophoto, Sky Map, Articles and images NGC 545 on SIMBAD

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with NGC 545

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NGC 545 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 545 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 545 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 545

In research: NGC 545 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 545 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 545 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Arp objects, Astronomical objects discovered in 1785, Cetus (constellation), so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NGC 545 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 545 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NGC 545 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 545 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NGC 545 in simple terms?

Why does NGC 545 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 545?

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 545.