About IC 4473
IC 4473 is a rare galaxy. It sits in the constellation Boo.
A triple galaxy system — three island universes tangled together, on a course that ends with them merging into one.
Rare galaxy 36 EP
IC 4473
RA 219.4756° · Dec 15.8617° · openngc
Score breakdown
· 2 badgesRare 50 pts → Epic
- Galaxy triplet +22
- Galaxy +14
Total score 36
14 more points to reach Epic.
Badges
- Galaxy · +14
- Galaxy triplet · +22
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.
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 Boötes.
- 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 April — 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
- Boo
- dso type
- GTrpl
- name
- IC 4473
- size arcmin
- 1.2
Nearby objects
How to see it
Look for IC 4473 in the constellation Boo.
Like any astronomical target, IC 4473 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 4473 is a rare galaxy
IC 4473 scores 36 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the rare tier. Another 14 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 2 science badges — Galaxy and Galaxy triplet — 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.