Type

Supermassive

Location

in the constellation Fornax

Distance

56 million light-years (17.2 megaparsecs)

Mass

2 million times the mass of the Sun

Size

Eight times the diameter of the Sun

Discovery Methods

• Detection of an accretion disk
• Measuring the motions of gas

NGC 1365

An artist's concept shows an accretion disk around a supermassive black hole, with a jet of particles shooting away from the pole.

A view of NGC 1365 from the Dark Energy Camera in Chile.

A true-color view of NGC 1365.

A false-color visual and radio image of NGC 1365. The galaxy is about twice the diameter of the Milky Way.

This document was last modified: May 13, 2013.