Small Magellanic Cloud

E20869

The Small Magellanic Cloud is a nearby dwarf irregular galaxy visible from the Southern Hemisphere and one of the closest galactic neighbors to the Milky Way.

Jump to: Statements Referenced by

Statements (51)

Predicate Object
instanceOf dwarf irregular galaxy
galaxy
satellite galaxy
absoluteMagnitudeV about −16.8
alsoKnownAs Nubecula Minor
SMC
angularSize about 5 degrees
apparentMagnitudeV about 2.7
associatedWith Magellanic Stream
bestSeenIn austral spring
catalogCode ESO 029- G 011
PGC 3085
connectedBy Magellanic Bridge
contains 47 Tucanae (in its vicinity on the sky)
H II regions
N66 (nebula)
NGC 346
globular clusters
old stars
planetary nebulae
star clusters
star-forming regions
supernova remnants
young stars
declination about −72° 48′
discoveredBy known to ancient southern observers
distanceFromEarth about 200000 light-years
distanceFromLargeMagellanicCloud about 75000 light-years
distanceFromMilkyWay about 200000 light-years
gasContent rich in neutral hydrogen
hasComponent bar-like main body
extended wing
interactsGravitationallyWith Large Magellanic Cloud
locatedIn constellation Tucana
mass on the order of 7×10^8 solar masses
memberOf Local Group
metallicity low compared to Milky Way
morphologicalType dwarf irregular
namedAfter Ferdinand Magellan
observedBy Magellan–Elcano expedition
surface form: Ferdinand Magellan's expedition
observedIn X-ray wavelengths
optical wavelengths
radio wavelengths
orbits Milky Way
radialVelocity about 158 km/s
redshift about 0.000527
rightAscension about 00h 52m
satelliteOf Milky Way
starFormationRate elevated compared to quiescent dwarfs
usedAs laboratory for low-metallicity star formation studies
visibleFrom Southern Hemisphere

Referenced by (7)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Magellanic Clouds connects Small Magellanic Cloud
subject surface form: Magellanic Bridge
Magellanic Clouds consistsOf Small Magellanic Cloud
Local Group contains Small Magellanic Cloud
Milky Way hasSatellite Small Magellanic Cloud
OGLE-IV survey monitorsRegion Small Magellanic Cloud
Large Magellanic Cloud orbitalCompanionOf Small Magellanic Cloud