NGC 3593 -- Lenticular Galaxy in Leo
NGC 3593 -- Pushing the Limits
Sometimes the mood hits me, like most amateur astronomers, to push the limits of their
telescope. Under a suburban sky using a 155mm refractor, the galaxy NGC 3593 is such
an object. This morning I had clear skies and the moon had long since set in the west.
Leo was high on the meridian. NGC 3593 did take some work to find. It was a small soft
circular glow at 84-power. At lower magnification I could not see it clearly and higher
power did not seem to add anything. This galaxy is oval, but only appeared circular, this
morning, in the refractor, probably indicating that I was only seeing the brighter galaxy core
and none of the extended portions of the galaxy. I could only imagine (but not see) the
massive star formation that is occurring in this starburst galaxy. If you have trouble seeing
the galaxy in the drawing, it is just to the left of the label.
telescope. Under a suburban sky using a 155mm refractor, the galaxy NGC 3593 is such
an object. This morning I had clear skies and the moon had long since set in the west.
Leo was high on the meridian. NGC 3593 did take some work to find. It was a small soft
circular glow at 84-power. At lower magnification I could not see it clearly and higher
power did not seem to add anything. This galaxy is oval, but only appeared circular, this
morning, in the refractor, probably indicating that I was only seeing the brighter galaxy core
and none of the extended portions of the galaxy. I could only imagine (but not see) the
massive star formation that is occurring in this starburst galaxy. If you have trouble seeing
the galaxy in the drawing, it is just to the left of the label.