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A beautiful, face-on spiral galaxy. Its spiral arms are outlined by rusty-brown dust lanes and bright-blue stars.
Hubble · Messier 74 · ESA/Hubble & NASA, R. Chandar

Messier 74

Galaxy in Pisces · 32 million light-years

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TypeGalaxy
ConstellationPisces
Right ascension1h 36m 42s
Declination+15° 47′
Object distance32 million light-years
Apparent magnitude9.3
Apparent size9.9′ (arc-minutes)
Approx. true diameter92,153 light-years across
Also known asM74 · NGC 628
Messier 74 is a galaxy (also catalogued as NGC 628) in the constellation Pisces — an island of billions of stars far beyond our own Milky Way. It was recorded by Charles Messier in his famous catalogue of 110 deep-sky objects. It spans roughly 9.9 arc-minutes on the sky. At about magnitude 9.3, it shows up well in a small backyard telescope.

Although it appears about 9.9′ wide on the sky, its real span is roughly 92,153 light-years — the difference is a measure of how far away it lies.

Observing Messier 74

Messier 74 lies in the constellation Pisces and is best placed in the evening sky around October. Its maximum altitude above the horizon depends on your latitude. Lying near the celestial equator, it can be seen from both hemispheres. A small backyard telescope will show it; binoculars may hint at it under dark skies. Note that the listed magnitude is spread across the whole object — diffuse galaxies and nebulae are often harder to see than the number alone suggests, so dark, moonless skies help a great deal.

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Sources

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