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Virgo A (M87)
elliptical galaxy in Virgo
M87 is the giant elliptical galaxy at the heart of the Virgo Cluster, and the home of the first black hole ever imaged by the Event Horizon Telescope. It is surrounded by a swarm of globular clusters, and a long jet of material streams out from its center.
Save your telescope or lens on the planner to lay your camera frame over this diagram.
// Key facts
- Catalog
- M87
- Type
- elliptical galaxy
- Constellation
- Virgo
- Size
- 7′ across
- Brightness
- Magnitude 8.6
- Distance
- about 53 million light-years
- Peak month (any location)
- Mar
- Typical prime months
- Jan to Jun
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Filter
- No filter (broadband); a light-pollution filter is optional
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How to image Virgo A
- At 7 arcminutes, use 1,200 to 2,000 mm.
- The faint jet needs high resolution and long exposure under good seeing.
- Best in spring evenings from northern sites.
Framing: what focal length?
M87 is small, so a "60% of the frame" focal length would be impractical. Here is how much of an APS-C frame it covers at common long focal lengths; expect to crop.
| Focal length | Share of the frame width |
|---|---|
| 1,000 mm | about 9% |
| 2,000 mm | about 17% |
| 3,000 mm | about 26% |
How high does it climb from your latitude?
The highest point M87 reaches in the sky. Above about 60° is excellent, 30° to 60° is workable, and under 30° you are looking through a lot of air.
| Latitude | Highest point | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| 55°N (Scotland, Alaska) | 47° | Workable |
| 45°N (Minneapolis, Milan) | 57° | Workable |
| 35°N (Los Angeles, Tokyo) | 67° | High in the sky |
| 25°N (Miami, Cairo) | 77° | High in the sky |
| 35°S (Sydney, Santiago) | 43° | Workable |
Also worth imaging
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