NGC 4003

NGC 4003 is a barred lenticular galaxy located 305 million light-years away^[3] in the constellation Leo. It was discovered on April 10, 1785, by astronomer William Herschel.^[4] NGC 4003 forms a pair with the galaxy NGC 4002 known as [T2015] nest 102886,^[5] and is part of the Coma Supercluster.^[6]

NGC 4003
SDSS image of NGC 4003.
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation	Leo
Right ascension	11h 57m 59.0s[1]
Declination	23° 07′ 30″[1]
Redshift	0.021848[1]
Heliocentric radial velocity	6550 km/s[1]
Distance	305 Mly (93.6 Mpc)[1]
Apparent magnitude (V)	14.28[1]
Absolute magnitude (B)	-22.89[1]
Characteristics
Type	SB0[1]
Mass	4.8 × 1010[2] M☉
Size	~183,100 ly (56.13 kpc) (estimated)[1]
Apparent size (V)	1.5′ × 0.9′[1]
Other designations
UGC 06948, CGCG 127-115, MCG +04-28-105, PGC 037646[1]

NGC 4003 has a triple-ringed structure. It has a nucleus with a ringlike structure with dust lanes inside it, a strong bar surrounded by a second ring which is connected to broad spiral arms, and a nearly complete outer ring. It is thought the structure of NGC 4003 is a result of past interaction with NGC 4002.^[4]

NGC 4003 is a LINER galaxy,^[7][8] with star formation dominating its nucleus,^[7] and is host to a supermassive black hole with an estimated mass of 9.6 × 10⁸ M_☉.^[9]

See also

• Coma Supercluster