| Name | Cocoon Galaxy |
| Designation(s) | Arp 269, NGC 4490, NGC 4485 |
| Object Type(s) | Galaxy |
| Relevant Catalog(s) | All (Chron), Arp, NGC |
| Arp Category | Galaxies with connected arms |
| Obs. Lat/Long | 42° 17', 073° 57' |
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Date and Time Observed | 2024-02-19 17:55:00 |
| Instrument | 8" EdgeHD SCT |
| Camera | ASI294mc-Pro |
| Image Details | Up is 275.5 degrees E of N. Total integration time was 30m 45s. Exposures 15s@305g, UV/IR Cut Filter. Darks subtracted, no flats. Dithered and recentered in SharpCap. No guiding.. |
| Description | This is just a fun EAA object. Relatively large with lots of detail. Loved capturing it! The connected arms appear to have been separate galaxies at one point... one large and distorted (NGC 4490), the other small and spiral (NGC 4485). In the gallery you'll find a second observation made using the same EdgeHD telescope, but with the 0.7x reducer and the Apollo M-mini mono camera. 44m of integration time. It does a better job of revealing the halos surrounding both galaxies, especially in the inverted view. I'm guessing that this is caused by new star formation stimulated by the interaction. This is not based on research, but observing similar phenomena in other Arp galaxies that astronomers interpreted that way. |
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