Messier 90

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates {{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox galaxy with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"| ignoreblank=y | name | image | image_scale | caption | alt | epoch | pronounce | constellation name | ra | dec | z | h_radial_v | gal_v | dist_pc | dist_ly | group_cluster | type | mass | mass_light_ratio | size | stars | appmag_v | appmag_b | absmag_v | absmag_b | mag_j | mag_h | mag_k| size_v | sbrightness | half_light_radius_pc | half_light_radius_arcminsec | h1_scale_length_pc | h1_scale_length_arcminsec | xray_radius_pc | xray_radius_arcminsec | notes | names | references }}

Messier 90 (also known as M90 and NGC 4569) is an intermediate spiral galaxy exhibiting a weak inner ring structure about 60 million light-years awayTemplate:Ref label in the constellation Virgo. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1781.<ref name="jones1991"> Template:Cite book</ref>

Membership of the Virgo ClusterEdit

Messier 90 is a member of the Virgo Cluster,<ref name="binggelietal1985"> Template:Cite journal</ref> being one of its largest and brightest spiral galaxies, with an absolute magnitude of around −22 (brighter than the Andromeda Galaxy).<ref name=Harris1991/> The galaxy is found about 1.5° from the central subgroup of Messier 87.<ref name="carnegieatlas"> Template:Cite book</ref> Due to the galaxy's interaction with the intracluster medium in its cluster, the galaxy has lost much of its interstellar medium. As a result of this process, which is referred to as ram-pressure stripping, the medium and star formation regions appear severely truncated compared to similar galaxies outside the Virgo Cluster<ref name="koopmannkenney2004"> Template:Cite journal</ref> and there are even H II regions outside the galactic plane,<ref name="koopmannkenney2004"/> as well as long (up to 80,000-parsec—that is, 260,000-light-year) tails of ionized gas that has been stripped away.<ref name="bosellietal2016"> Template:Cite journal</ref>

Star formation activityEdit

As stated above, the star formation in Messier 90 appears truncated. Consequently, the galaxy's spiral arms appear to be smooth and featureless, rather than knotted like galaxies with extended star formation,<ref name="koopmannkenney2004"/> which justifies why this galaxy, along with NGC 4921 in the Coma Cluster has been classified as the prototype of an anemic galaxy.<ref name=Bergh1976> Template:Cite journal</ref> Some authors go even further and consider it is a passive spiral galaxy, similar to those found on galaxy clusters with high redshift.<ref name=Moran2007> Template:Cite journal</ref>

However, its center appears to host significant nebula and star formation, where around 50,000 stars of spectral types O and B that formed around 5 to 6 million years ago<ref name="gabel2002"> Template:Cite journal</ref> are set amidst many A-type supergiants that were born in earlier starbursts, between 15 and 30 million years ago.<ref name="chyży2006"> Template:Cite journal</ref>

Multiple supernovae (up to 100,000<ref name="chyży2006"/>) in the nucleus have produced 'superwinds' that are blowing the galaxy's interstellar medium outward into the intracluster medium<ref name="tschokeetal2001"> Template:Cite journal</ref> collimated in two jets, one of which is being disturbed by interaction with Virgo's intracluster medium as the galaxy moves through it.<ref name="Kenney2004"> Template:Cite journal</ref>

BlueshiftEdit

The spectrum of Messier 90 is blueshifted, which indicates that, net of non-aligned vectors of motion, the gap between it and our galaxy is narrowing.<ref name="ned"/> The spectra of most galaxies are redshifted. The blueshift was originally used to argue that Messier 90 was actually an object in the foreground of the Virgo Cluster. However, since the phenomenon was limited mostly to galaxies in the same part of the sky as the Virgo Cluster, it appeared that this inference based on the blueshift was incorrect. Instead, many blueshifts exhibit the large range in velocities of objects within the Virgo Cluster.<ref name="carnegieatlas"/>

Distance measurementsEdit

Low levels of H I gas prevents using the Tully–Fisher relation to estimate the distance to Messier 90.<ref name="tschokeetal2001"/>

Companion galaxiesEdit

Messier 90 is rich in globular clusters, with around 1,000 of them.<ref name="Harris1991"> {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The galaxy IC 3583 was once thought to be a satellite of Messier 90;<ref name="chyży2006"/> however, it is now thought they are too far away to be interacting at all.<ref name="bosellietal2016"/>

GalleryEdit

Messier90 - SDSS DR14 (panorama).jpg

Messier 90 imaged by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
Messier90 - GALEX.jpg

Messier 90 imaged by GALEX

NotesEdit

Template:Note label Template:Harvnb uses a Hubble constant of 75 (km/s)/Mpc to estimate a distance of 16.8 Mpc to NGC 4569. Adjusting for the 2006 value of 70Template:± (km/s)/Mpc we get a distance of 18.0Template:± Mpc.