M104 - Sombrero Galaxy in Virgo

The Messier Ten Minute Challenge

M104 - Sombrero Galaxy in Virgo

M104, with a diameter of 100,000 light years and a mass of 1.3
trillion suns is one of the brightest and most massive of the galaxies
in the Virgo group. Its distance is estimated to be about 50 million
light years. The galaxy was named the Sombrero Galaxy because of its
appearance. It is seen from 6 degrees south of its equatorial plane
which is marked by a thick rim of obscuring dust. Long exposures show
M104 to have a large, faint, halo and many globular clusters. It also
has an unusually pronounced central bulge.

http://www.martin-nicholson.info/ten...lenge/m104.htm

Martin Nicholson, Daventry, England.
http://www.martin-nicholson.info/1/1a.htm

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