HICKSON COMPACT GALAXY GROUPS ( HICKSON GALAXIES )
by the Faulkes Telescope Project (LCOGTN)
The Hickson Compact Group (HCG) catalogue is a collection of galaxy groupings compiled and published by Paul Hickson. The catalogue has 100 entries.
It is possible that compact galaxy groups and interacting galaxies may play a significant role in galaxy evolution.
The following images have been acquired using the two meter remote telescopes ( Mauna Kea on Hawaii and Siding Springs in Australia) of the Faulkes Telescope Project which is part of LCOGTN providing access to a global network of robotic telescopes for science education.
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HICKSON COMPACT GALAXY GROUPS (17,18,26,31,40,57,63,79,87,91,92,95,96,97,98,99,100)
(click on image for larger version)
Hickson CG 17 in Aries
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Hickson CG 18 in Aries is also known as ARP 258 and VV143.
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Hickson CG 26 in Eridanus
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Hickson CG 31 in Orion also known as ARP 259
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HCG 40 also known as ARP 321 in Hydra. This system is over 300 million light years from Earth
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Hickson CG 57 in Leo. The system is over 400 million light years distant. Also known as ARP 320
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Hickson CG 63 is 420 million light years away in the constellation Centaurus
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Hickson CG 79 also known as Seyfert’s Sextet in Serpens Caput. This low surface brightness compact group is 190 million light-years away
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Hickson CG 87 in Capricornus is 380 million light-years away
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Hickson CG 91 Found in Piscis Austrinus. This compact group 300 million light years away has two interacting components A and D
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Hickson CG 92 (ARP 319) in Pegasus better known as Stephan’s Quintet. This interacting group is approximately 290 million light-years away though NGC 7320(lower left) s a foreground object at about 40 million light-years (FIELD 4.6′)
A Cosmic Puzzle – Is the quasar in the image above in front of the spiral galaxy NGC 7319 or behind it? Redshift data suggests the galaxy is 300 million light years from Earth whilst the quasar wih a redshift of z=2.114 would make it several billion light years away.
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Hickson CG 95 in Pegasus is 500 million lights-years from Earth. Also known as ARP 150.
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Hickson CG 96 – A quartet in Pegasus over 360 million light years from Earth. Also known as ARP 182.
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Hickson CG 97 in Pisces
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Hickson CG 98 ( ARP 323, NGC7783) in Pisces is over 330 million light years from Earth.
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Hickson CG 99 in Pegasus. An accordant quintet over 360 million light years away. Galaxy C has a pronuonced ring and bar
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Hickson CG 100 (NGC 7803) is 220 million light years away in the constellation of Pegasus
February 16, 2011 at 6:09 pm
Hello Gain,
I work as a science teacher in Montauk School, USA. Dr. Sarah Roberts has arranged for my science class to work with a science class in England, on a collaborative HCG project working with a class in the UK.
Any recommendations for imaging HCG’s using Faulkes telescopes?
March 8, 2011 at 10:34 pm
Hi Joe, I’m an American doing Astronomy in the UK at the home of the Faulkes Project, I can give you a basic idea on what is the best method for HCG imaging having worked on a few with FTP myself
For the HCG projects, most information should be provided by the Faulkes Project or Sarah.
But basic guidelines for if you have a session planned; Make sure you have the correct coordinates RA/DEC (J2000 era), you can use a free planetarium program to check their availability (Stellarium is a very good one to use)
For imaging anywhere from a 60-90 second exposure with an RGB filter set and a 120 second H-alpha should provide a quality image with good detail.
But it would be best to check with Sarah, as she will be collaborating the projects between Faulkes, you and the UK school she will have the specific details of what you need to do and where to get information.