Alternate Names

NGC 5194/5195, Whirlpool Galaxy

Type

Supermassive

Location

in the constellation Canes Venatici, beneath the Big Dipper

Finder Chart

Distance

27 million light-years

Mass

1 million times the mass of the Sun

Size

Diameter of 4 million miles (6 million km), about four times the diameter of the Sun.

Discovery Methods

• Detection of an accretion disk

An ultraviolet view of M51 from the orbiting GALEX spacecraft. The spiral arms are clearly outlined because they contain many hot, young stars, which produce lots of ultraviolet energy. []

This document was last modified: October 24, 2005.