Small Magellanic Cloud
The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), or Nubecula Minor, is a dwarf galaxy near the Milky Way. Classified as a dwarf irregular galaxy, the SMC has a D25 isophotal diameter of about 5.78 kiloparsecs (18,900 light-years), and contains several hundred million stars. It has a total mass of approximately 7 billion solar masses. At a distance of about 200,000 light-years, the SMC is among the nearest intergalactic neighbors of the Milky Way and is one of the most distant objects visible to the naked eye.
| SMC | |
|---|---|
The Small Magellanic Cloud (Source: Digitized Sky Survey 2) | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Tucana and Hydrus |
| Right ascension | 00h 52m 44.8s |
| Declination | −72° 49′ 43″ |
| Redshift | 0.000527 |
| Distance | 203.7 ± 1.5 kly (62.44 ± 0.47 kpc) |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 2.7 |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SB(s)m pec |
| Number of stars | 3 billion |
| Size | 5.78 kiloparsecs (18,900 light-years) (diameter; 25.0 mag/arcsec2 B-band isophote) |
| Apparent size (V) | 5° 20′ × 3° 5′ |
| Notable features | Companion dwarf to the Milky Way |
| Other designations | |
| SMC, NGC 292, PGC 3085, Nubecula Minor | |
The SMC is visible from the entire Southern Hemisphere and can be fully glimpsed low above the southern horizon from latitudes south of about 15° north. The galaxy is located across the constellation of Tucana and part of Hydrus, appearing as a faint hazy patch resembling a detached piece of the Milky Way. The SMC has an average apparent diameter of about 4.2° (8 times the Moon's) and thus covers an area of about 14 square degrees (70 times the Moon's). Since its surface brightness is very low, this deep-sky object is best seen on clear moonless nights and away from city lights. The SMC forms a pair with the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), which lies 20° to the east, and like the LMC, it is a member of the Local Group. It is currently a satellite of the Milky Way, but is likely a former satellite of the LMC.