astronomy

NGC 5468

NGC 5468 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 5468 rather than just read about it. In short: NGC 5468 is an intermediate spiral galaxy located in the constellation Virgo. It is located at a distance of about 140 million light-years from Earth, which, given its apparent dimensions, means that NGC 5468 is about 110,000 light-years across.

Key takeaways

NGC 5468 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 5468 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NGC 5468 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NGC 5468 is an intermediate spiral galaxy located in the constellation Virgo. It is located at a distance of about 140 million light-years from Earth, which, given its apparent dimensions, means that NGC 5468 is about 110,000 light-years across. It was discovered by William Herschel on 5 March 1785. NGC 5468 is seen face-on, and the spiral pattern is open. The two principal arms emanate from a small bar and start to branch into several thin fragments after some distance. Three large H II regions and some fainter ones can be seen in the images of the Carnegie Atlas of Galaxies. These regions feature intense star formation. SN 2005P was located at the edge of one of these regions. As of 2024, NGC 5468 is the most distant galaxy in which Hubble Space Telescope has detected Cepheid variable stars, which are important milepost markers for measuring distances. NGC 5468 forms a non-interacting pair with NGC 5472, which lies at a projected distance of 5.1 arcminutes. NGC 5468 belongs to the NGC 5493 galaxy group. Other members of the group are the interacting pair Arp 271 (NGC 5426 and NGC 5427), NGC 5476, and NGC 5493.

Supernovae Six supernovae have been observed in NGC 5468:

SN 1999cp (Type Ia, mag. 18.2) was discovered by the Lick Observatory Supernova Search (LOSS) on 18 June 1999. SN 2002cr (Type Ia, mag. 16.5) was discovered by Reiki Kushida on 1 May 2002. SN 2002ed (Type IIP, mag. 16.5) was discovered by Berto Monard (bio-fr) on 24 July 2002. This supernova and SN 2002cr were visible in the galaxy at the same time. SN 2005P (Type Ia-pec, mag. 18.1) was discovered by the Lick Observatory Supernova Search (LOSS) on 21 January 2005. SN 2018dfg (Type IIb, mag. 17.8) was discovered by the Backyard Observatory Supernova Search (BOSS) on 10 July 2018. SN 2023cj (Type Ic, mag. 16.97) was discovered by Gaia Photometric Science Alerts on 5 January 2023.

Gallery

References

External links Media related to NGC 5468 at Wikimedia Commons NGC 5468 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 5468

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NGC 5468 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 5468 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 5468 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 5468

In research: NGC 5468 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 5468 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 5468 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Astronomical objects discovered in 1785, Discoveries by William Herschel, IRAS catalogue objects, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NGC 5468 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 5468 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NGC 5468 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 5468 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NGC 5468 in simple terms?

Why does NGC 5468 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 5468?

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 5468.