Another Virgo cluster member in Coma
Berenices is a spiral galaxy known as M99. It is unusual in
appearance in that its shape is very asymmetric. It is believed
that this asymmetric shape is the result of a recent encounter
of another member of the Virgo cluster. It is located about 60
million light-years from Earth and is receding from us at an
unusually high rate of 2324 km/sec. Three supernovae have been
observed in this galaxy. One was seen in 1967 while two other
occurred in 1972 and 1986. With a magnitude of only 9.8, this
galaxy may be a difficult find for the binocular observer. Large
telescopes will provide the best views.
