NGC 4676 (aka Arp 242)
"The Mice"- An Interacting pair of Galaxies

NGC 4676, nicknamed "The Mice", is a pair of closely interacting galaxies. There is a very thin bright tail extending from the northern galaxy (NGC 4676A), and a dimmer broad tail extending from the other (NGC 4676B). There is also a bridge that connects the two. Thus it seems that these galaxies have actually collided, unlike the similar pair Arp 270. Both of "The Mice" are in the IRAS catalog of infrared sources, and this indicates massive star formation.

This pair is included in Arp’s catalog of unusual galaxies as ARP 242. Using the red shift data from the “NASA Extra-galactic Data Base(NED)”, and a Hubble Constant of 62 Km per sec., per Megaparsec, one can calculate a rough distance for The Mice as: 350 million light years.

 

NGC 4676A (ARP 242) Magnitude: 13.8 Constellation: Coma Berenices RA: 12h 46m 10.2s Dec: +30° 44' 00" Epoch 2000  Size (mins): 2.3' x 0.7' Classification: SO pec?        Lenticular, peculiar                            (type uncertain) Dreyer description (NGC):         "Very faint, westward moderately extended; binuclear?"

NGC 4676B (ARP 242) Magnitude: 14.0 Constellation: Coma Berenices RA: 12h 46m 11.3s Dec: +30° 43' 28" Epoch 2000  Size (mins): 2.2' x 0.8' Classification: SB(s)0/a pec        Barred Spiral, s-shaped, peculiar

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George Normandin, KAS

August 3rd, 2000