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Information About

Messier 99




  Epoch J20000
  Type SA(s)c: I
  Ra 12<sup>h</sup> 18<sup>m</sup> 496<sup>s</sup>
  Dec +14&deg 25' 01"
  Dist Ly 60 Million Ly
  Z +0008036
  Appmag V +97
  Size V 54' &times 47'
  Constellation Name Coma Berenices
  Radius Ly
  Absmag V 13
  Names NGC 4254,<br>'''''Coma Pinwheel Galaxy'''''


Messier 99 (also kown as '''''NGC 4254''''' or '''''M99''''' for short, nicknamed '''''Coma Pinwheel Galaxy''''') is a Spiral Galaxy approximatly 60 Million Light-year s away in the Constellation Coma Berenices . It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781 .

The galaxy has a normal looking arm and an extended arm that is less tightly wound. A bridge of neutral hydrogen gas links NGC 4254 with VIRGOHI21 . The gravity from the Dark Galaxy VIRGOHI21 appears to have distorted M99 and drawn out the gas bridge, as the two galaxy-sized objects have a close encounter, before they go their separate ways. It is expected that the drawn out arm will relax to match the normal arm once the encounter is over.


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