Type

Supermassive

Location

In the constellation Virgo

Finder Chart

Distance

90 million light-years (27 megaparsecs)

Mass

180 million times the mass of the Sun

Size

Diameter roughly equal to the outer edge of the asteroid belt

Discovery Methods

• Measuring the motions of stars

1

A ground-based image of NGC 5576. Observations show that it is interacting with the smaller galaxy to its lower right, with a "bridge" of stars and gas between them. [David W. Hogg/Michael R. Blanton/SDSS Collaboration]

This document was last modified: March 14, 2012.