About IC 2308
IC 2308 is a rare galaxy. It sits in the constellation Cnc.
A triple galaxy system — three island universes tangled together, on a course that ends with them merging into one.
Rare galaxy 44 EP
IC 2308
RA 125.1885° · Dec 19.3623° · openngc
Score breakdown
· 4 badgesRare 50 pts → Epic
- Galaxy triplet +22
- Galaxy +14
- Spiral galaxy +5
- On the zodiac +3
Total score 44
6 more points to reach Epic.
Badges
- Galaxy · +14
- Galaxy triplet · +22
- Spiral galaxy · +5
- On the zodiac · +3
Trivia
What it actually is
- What it actually is. A triple galaxy system — three island universes tangled together, on a course that ends with them merging into one.
- Spiral. A spiral galaxy. Those arms are not solid structures but traffic jams — density waves that stars drift into and out of as they orbit.
Sense of scale
- Sense of scale. Galaxies pass through each other almost without collisions — the stars are so far apart that they simply miss.
- Scale. Home to hundreds of billions of stars — a universe unto itself, and every one of those points of light could have planets.
Find it in the sky
- Where to look. You'll find it in the constellation Cancer.
- Northern sky. It rides the northern half of the sky — an easier target the further north you are.
- Best time of year. It stands highest in the middle of the night around January — that's when to go looking.
How we came to know it
- The Index Catalogue. The IC was the 1895 and 1908 supplement to the NGC — the first catalogue in history to be filled largely with objects found on photographic plates rather than by eye.
Properties
- constellation
- Cnc
- dso type
- GTrpl
- hubble
- Sab
- name
- IC 2308
- size arcmin
- 0.63
- surface brightness
- 22.85
How to see it
Look for IC 2308 in the constellation Cnc.
Like any astronomical target, IC 2308 is best seen from a dark site away from city lights, and when it is above the horizon depends on your latitude and the time of year. The visibility panel above works out tonight's viewing window for your saved location.
Why IC 2308 is a rare galaxy
IC 2308 scores 44 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 6 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 4 science badges — Galaxy, Galaxy triplet, Spiral galaxy and On the zodiac — each earned for a real, measurable property of the object. Rarity on Spacedle is never random: the more remarkable an object's astrophysics, the more badges it collects, the higher it scores, and the rarer it ranks.