| NGC 3974 | |
|---|---|
 The lenticular galaxy NGC 3974. | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Crater |
| Right ascension | 11h 55m 40.14s[1] |
| Declination | −12° 01′ 38.8″[1] |
| Redshift | 0.019133[1] |
| Heliocentric radial velocity | 5736 ± 32 km/s[1] |
| Distance | 293.4 ± 20.7 Mly (89.96 ± 6.34 Mpc)[1] |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 13.4[1] |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | (R')SB0/a?(r)[1] |
| Size | ~80,500 ly (24.67 kpc) (estimated)[1] |
| Apparent size (V) | 1.2' x 1.1'[1] |
| Other designations | |
| 2MASX J11554013-1201386, MCG -02-31-001, PGC 37452[1] | |
NGC 3974 is a lenticular galaxy in the constellation of Crater. Its velocity with respect to the cosmic microwave background is 6099 ± 41 km/s, which corresponds to a Hubble distance of 89.96 ± 6.34 Mpc (∼293 million light-years).[1] It was discovered by British astronomer John Herschel on 9 March 1828.[2]
NGC 3974 is possibly a LINER galaxy, i.e. it has a type of nucleus that is defined by its spectral line emission which has weakly ionized or neutral atoms, while the spectral line emission from strongly ionized atoms is relatively weak.[1]
One supernova has been observed in NGC 3974: SN 2024gra (type Ia, mag 18.9).[3]