Discover Dwingeloo 1, a barred spiral galaxy about 10 million light-years away, so obscured, it wasn’t discovered until 1994.
The heavily obscured, relatively nearby galaxy Dwingeloo 1 is visible in this long-exposure amateur shot. Credit: David Ratledge
- Dwingeloo 1, a barred spiral galaxy in Cassiopeia, remained undetected until 1994 due to significant obscuration by interstellar dust within our own galaxy.
- Its discovery was facilitated by the Dwingeloo Obscured Galaxy Survey, utilizing detection methods based on neutral hydrogen emission.
- Located approximately 10 million light-years from Earth, Dwingeloo 1 is a constituent of the IC 342/Maffei group of galaxies.
- Despite a total magnitude of 13.1 and an apparent size of 4.2’ by 0.3’, Dwingeloo 1 possesses a physical size and mass comparable to the Triangulum Galaxy (M33), making it challenging to observe visually but accessible through specialized imaging techniques.
Quite a number of small galaxies lie near us in the universe but are obscured by dust in our own galaxy and so are hard to see. Such is the case with Dwingeloo 1, a nearby barred spiral in Cassiopeia. So obscured is this galaxy that it remained undiscovered until 1994, when it was uncovered by the Dwingeloo Obscured Galaxy Survey. Astronomers detected it from its neutral hydrogen emission.
Dwingeloo 1 lies about 10 million light-years away and is a member of the IC 342/Maffei group of galaxies, one of the closest small groups of galaxies beyond our own Local Group.
Although its total magnitude is 13.1 and it covers 4.2’ by 0.3’, it is an extremely difficult object to detect by visual means. Astroimagers have had some success recording it, even showing its barred spiral shape, in recent years.
In physical size and mass, Dwingeloo 1 is comparable to M33, the Triangulum Galaxy.
