M 66 Deep sky · Galaxy in Leo · M 66 · NGC 3627
Leo Triplet
The largest galaxy of the Leo Triplet — three spirals in one telescope field below the Lion’s hind leg.
Save the chart (SVG) Tactile chart (A4 SVG)
- Type
- Galaxy
- Designations
- M 66 · NGC 3627
- Constellation
- Leo
- Apparent magnitude
- 8.9
- Apparent size
- 9′ × 4′
- Position (J2000)
- RA 11h 20m · Dec +12° 59′
The full Moon, about 31′ across, is 3.4 times as wide. The Sun passes 8° from it around early September, and for about 26 days of the year it sits within 15° of the Sun, lost in its glare.
When to see it
On the night of Wed 10 Mar 2027, when it is highest around midnight, on each city’s own clock:
| From | Rises | Highest | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|
| London GMT | 17:02 | 00:08 · 51° | 07:13 |
| New York EST | 17:19 | 00:03 · 62° | 06:47 |
| Singapore GMT+8 | 19:13 | 01:13 · 79° | 07:14 |
| Sydney GMT+11 | 19:40 | 01:04 · 43° | 06:28 |
Common questions
- Can I see it from 50° north?
- Yes. It rises and sets, and at its highest it stands 53° up in the south.
- Can I see it from 35° south?
- Yes. It rises and sets, and at its highest it stands 42° up in the north.
- When is the best time of year to see it?
- Around early March, when it stands opposite the Sun and is highest at midnight. It comes round about two hours earlier each month, so by early June it is highest in the early evening, and in early December not until the hours before dawn.
- How bright is it?
- Magnitude 8.9 in total, but that light is spread over 9′ × 4′ of sky: on average 21.5 magnitudes per square arcsecond. Against a dark country sky that average stands out; a city’s glow drowns all but its brightest parts.
- Naked eye, binoculars or telescope?
- Binoculars. At magnitude 8.9 it is past the eye, but a 50 mm pair under a dark sky reaches about magnitude 11.0.
Look for
It lies between Chertan and the star below it in Leo. A low-power eyepiece shows it with M 65 and NGC 3628 beside it.
Science
Its arms are lopsided and its core displaced: the three galaxies have passed close to one another, and the pull has bent them out of shape.
Look for
From 50° north it climbs to 53°; from 35° north it climbs to 68°; from the equator it climbs to 77°; from 35° south it climbs to 42°.
Look for
Magnitude 8.9 against the faintest star each can show: the eye under a city sky, 4.5 (4.4 short); the eye under a dark country sky, 7.0 (1.9 short); 50 mm binoculars under that dark sky, 11.0 (2.1 to spare); a 100 mm telescope there, 12.5 (3.6 to spare). Those limits are for a point of light; its light is spread over its whole size, so it needs some of that margin in hand. Through 7×50 binoculars, whose field is about 7.1° across, it spans 2% of the field’s width; through a 100 mm telescope at 50×, a field about 1° across, it spans 15% of the field’s width.