View source for NGC 4261

{{Short description|Galaxy in the constellation Virgo}}

{{Infobox Galaxy
 | name       = [[New General Catalogue|NGC]] 4261
 | image      = NGC 4261 imaged by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory.png
 | caption    = NGC 4261 imaged by the [[Vera C. Rubin Observatory]]
 | credit     =
 | epoch      = [[J2000]]
 | constellation name = [[Virgo (constellation)|Virgo]]
 | ra         = {{RA|12|19|23.21606}}<ref name=Truebenbach2017/>
 | dec        = {{DEC|+05|49|29.7000}}<ref name=Truebenbach2017/>
 | z          = 0.007465<ref name=ned/>
 | h_radial_v = {{val|2238|7|u=km/s|fmt=commas}}<ref name=ned/>
 | dist_ly    = {{convert|29.4|±|2.6|Mpc|Mly|order=flip|abbr=on|lk=on}}<ref name="jensenetal2003"/>
 | group_cluster = NGC 4261 group, Virgo Cluster
 | type       = E2<ref name=vanDenBergh2002/>
 | appmag_v   = 12.87<ref name=Véron-Cetty2010/>
 | appmag_b   = 13.92<ref name=Véron-Cetty2010/>
 | absmag_v   =
 | size_v     = {{nowrap|4′.17 × 3′.39}}<ref name=Paturel2003/>
 | mass       = <!-- In solar masses {{Val|0|e=0}} -->
 | mass_light_ratio = <!-- In solar units  -->
 | size       = <!-- In light years  -->
 | notes      =
 | names      = [[New General Catalogue|NGC]] 4261, [[Uppsala General Catalogue|UGC]] 7360,<ref name=SIMBAD/> [[Principal Galaxies Catalogue|PGC]] 39659<ref name="ned" />
}}
'''NGC 4261''' is an [[elliptical galaxy]]<ref name="Davis1995" /> located around 100 million [[light-year]]s<ref name="STScI-1997-01" /> away in the [[constellation]] [[Virgo (constellation)|Virgo]]. It was discovered April 13, 1784, by the German-born astronomer [[William Herschel]].<ref name=cseligman/> The galaxy is a member of its own somewhat meager<ref name=Zezas2003/> [[galaxy group]] known as the [[NGC 4261 group]],<ref name=Davis1995/> which is part of the [[Virgo Cluster]].<ref name=cseligman/>{{dubious|date=July 2023}}

The [[Galaxy morphological classification|morphological classification]] of this galaxy is E2,<ref name=vanDenBergh2002/> indicating an [[elliptical galaxy]] with a 5:4 ratio between the major and minor axes. The [[stellar population]] of the galaxy is old, showing no indications of recent mergers or interactions with other members of its group. Large-scale [[isophote]]s of the galaxy are generally boxy in form, with no markers that would suggest a disruptive interaction within the last billion years. There is a [[dust lane]] along the north–south axis of the galaxy and a disk of dust around the [[Galactic Center|nucleus.]]

Two prominent [[Astrophysical jet|jets]] emanating from the nucleus can be observed in the radio band. It has an [[active galactic nucleus]] with a [[supermassive black hole]] somewhat offset from the center of the core.<ref name="STScI-1995-47"/> The black hole is estimated to have a mass of {{val|1.62|0.04|e=9|ul=solar mass}}.<ref name=Ruffa/> The galaxy is estimated to be about 60 thousand light-years across,<ref name="atlas"/> and a jet emanating from it is estimated to span about 88 thousand light-years.<ref name="astro162"/>

A [[Type Ia supernova]]<ref name=vanDenBergh2002/> event in this galaxy was reported on January 1, 2001. It was designated SN 2001A, marking the first supernova discovery of the year. The position of the event was {{val|3.1|ul=arcsecond}} west and {{val|10.7|u=arcsecond}} north of the galactic nucleus. It reached magnitude 18.4 on December 15 of the previous year.<ref name=Modjaz2001/>

==Gallery==
<gallery mode="packed" heights="200" style="text-align:left">
File:NGC 4261 X-ray.png|An [[X-ray]] image of NGC 4261
File:NGC4261 - radio, HST.png|A [[Hubble Space Telescope]] (right) image of the gas and dust disk in the [[active galactic nucleus]] of NGC 4261.  Credit: HST/[[NASA]]/[[ESA]].
File:NGC 4261 Group North legacy dr10.jpg|Northern part of the NGC 4261 Group, with NGC 4261 at the bottom ant [[NGC 4260]] at the top
File:NGC 4261 Group South legacy dr10.jpg|Southern part of the NGC 4261 Group
File:NGC 4273 NGC 4277 legacy dr10.jpg|[[NGC 4273]] (spiral galaxy to the right) and [[NGC 4277]], which are part of the NGC 4261 Group
</gallery>

==References==
{{reflist|refs=

<ref name=SIMBAD>{{cite simbad
  | title=NGC 4261 | access-date=2020-09-18 }}</ref>

<ref name=cseligman>{{cite web
 | url=https://cseligman.com/text/atlas/ngc42a.htm#4261
 | title=New General Catalogue objects: NGC 4250 - 4299
 | last=Seligman | first=Courtney | website=cseligman.com
 | access-date=2020-09-19 }}</ref>

<ref name="ned">{{cite web
 | title=NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database
 | work=Results for NGC 4261
 | url=http://nedwww.ipac.caltech.edu/cgi-bin/nph-objsearch?objname=NGC+4261&img_stamp=yes&extend=no
 | access-date=2007-03-30 }}</ref>

<ref name=vanDenBergh2002>{{cite journal
 | title=Classifications of the Host Galaxies of Supernovae
 | display-authors=1 | last1=van den Bergh | first1=Sidney
 | last2=Li | first2=Weidong | last3=Filippenko | first3=Alexei V.
 | journal=The Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific
 | volume=114 | issue=798 | pages=820–825 | date=August 2002
 | arxiv=astro-ph/0204298 | bibcode=2002PASP..114..820V
 | doi=10.1086/341709 | s2cid=46679854 }}</ref>

<ref name=Modjaz2001>{{cite journal
 | title=Supernova 2001A in NGC 4261
 | display-authors=1 | last1=Modjaz | first1=M.
 | last2=Li | first2=W. D. | last3=Schwartz | first3=M.
 | journal=IAU Circular
 | volume=7554 | page=2 | date=January 2001
 | editor1-last=Green | editor1-first=D. W. E.
 | bibcode=2001IAUC.7554....2M }}</ref>

<ref name=Zezas2003>{{cite journal
 | title=NGC 4261 and NGC 4697: Rejuvenated Elliptical Galaxies
 | last1=Zezas | first1=A. | last2=Hernquist | first2=L.
 | last3=Fabbiano | first3=G. | last4=Miller | first4=J.
 | display-authors=1 | journal=The Astrophysical Journal
 | volume=599 | issue=2 | pages=L73–L77 | date=December 2003
 | arxiv=astro-ph/0310567 | bibcode=2003ApJ...599L..73Z
 | doi=10.1086/380895 | s2cid=15195053 }}</ref>

<ref name=Paturel2003>{{Cite journal
 | last1=Paturel | first1=G. | last2=Petit | first2=C.
 | last3=Prugniel | first3=Ph. | last4=Theureau | first4=G.
 | last5=Rousseau | first5=J. | last6=Brouty | first6=M.
 | last7=Dubois | first7=P. | last8=Cambrésy | first8=L.
 | title=HYPERLEDA. I. Identification and designation of galaxies
 | display-authors=1 | journal=Astronomy and Astrophysics
 | volume=412 | pages=45–55 | date=December 2003
 | doi=10.1051/0004-6361:20031411 | doi-access=free
 | bibcode=2003A&A...412...45P }}</ref>

<ref name=Véron-Cetty2010>{{cite journal
 | last1=Véron-Cetty | first1=M.-P. | last2=Véron | first2=P.
 | title=A catalogue of quasars and active nuclei
 | journal=[[Astronomy & Astrophysics]]
 | year=2010 | volume=518 | id=A10 | version=13th
 | doi=10.1051/0004-6361/201014188 | doi-access=free
 | bibcode=2010A&A...518A..10V }}</ref>

<ref name=Truebenbach2017>{{cite journal
 | title=The VLBA Extragalactic Proper Motion Catalog and a Measurement of the Secular Aberration Drift
 | last1=Truebenbach | first1=Alexandra E.
 | last2=Darling | first2=Jeremy
 | journal=The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
 | volume=233 | issue=1 | id=3 | pages=16 | date=November 2017
 | bibcode=2017ApJS..233....3T | doi=10.3847/1538-4365/aa9026 | arxiv=1710.02099 | s2cid=119200128 | doi-access=free }}</ref>

<ref name="jensenetal2003">{{cite journal
 | title=Measuring Distances and Probing the Unresolved Stellar Populations of Galaxies Using Infrared Surface Brightness Fluctuations
 | last1=Jensen | first1=Joseph B. | last2=Tonry | first2=John L.
 | last3=Barris | first3=Brian J. | last4=Thompson | first4=Rodger I.
 | last5=Liu | first5=Michael C. | last6=Rieke | first6=Marcia J.
 | last7=Ajhar | first7=Edward A. | last8=Blakeslee | first8=John P.
 | display-authors=1 | journal=Astrophysical Journal
 | date=February 2003 | volume=583 | issue=2 | pages=712–726
 | bibcode=2003ApJ...583..712J | arxiv = astro-ph/0210129
 | doi=10.1086/345430 | s2cid=551714 }}</ref>

<ref name=Davis1995>{{cite journal
 | title=Diffuse hot gas in the NGC 4261 group of galaxies
 | last1=Davis | first1=David S. | last2=Mushotzky | first2=Richard F.
 | last3=Mulchaey | first3=John S. | last4=Worrall | first4=D. M.
 | last5=Birkinshaw | first5=M. | last6=Burstein | first6=David
 | display-authors=1 | journal=Astrophysical Journal
 | volume=444 | issue=2 | pages=582–589 | date=1995
 | bibcode=1995ApJ...444..582D | doi=10.1086/175632
 | url=https://cds.cern.ch/record/278298/files/SCAN-9503134.pdf }}</ref>

<ref name="STScI-1997-01">{{cite web
 | date=1997-01-13
 | title=Massive Black Holes Dwell in Most Galaxies, According to Hubble Census
 | publisher=Hubblesite STScI-1997-01
 | url=https://hubblesite.org/contents/news-releases/1997/news-1997-01.html
 | access-date=2024-09-05}}</ref>

<ref name="STScI-1995-47">{{cite web
 | date=1995-12-04
 | title=Hubble Finds a New Black Hole – and Unexpected New Mysteries
 | publisher=Hubblesite STScI-1995-47
 | url=https://hubblesite.org/contents/news-releases/1995/news-1995-47.html
 | access-date=2024-09-05 }}</ref>

<ref name="atlas">{{cite web
 | title=The Virgo Cluster
 | publisher=An Atlas of the Universe
 | url=http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/galgrps/vir.html
 | access-date=2010-05-02}}</ref>

<ref name="astro162">{{cite web
 | title=The Giant Elliptical Galaxy NGC 4261
 | publisher=Astronomy 162 (Dept. Physics & Astronomy University of Tennessee)
 | url=http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/active/ngc4261.html
 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19991009170339/http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/active/ngc4261.html
 | url-status=dead
 | archive-date=October 9, 1999
 | access-date=2010-05-02}}</ref>

<ref name=Ruffa>{{cite journal
 | doi=10.1093/mnras/stad1119 | doi-access=free | date=2023
 | title=WISDOM project – XIV. SMBH mass in the early-type galaxies NGC 0612, NGC 1574, and NGC 4261 from CO dynamical modelling
 | last1=Ruffa | first1=Ilaria | last2=Davis | first2=Timothy A.
 | last3=Cappellari | first3=Michele | last4=((Bureau)) | first4=Martin
 | last5=Elford | first5=Jacob | last6=Iguchi | first6=Satoru
 | last7=Lelli | first7=Federico | last8=Liang | first8=Fu-Heng
 | last9=Liu | first9=Lijie | last10=Lu | first10=Anan
 | last11=Sarzi | first11=Marc | last12=Williams | first12=Thomas G.
 | journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
 | volume=522 | issue=4 | pages=6170–6195 | arxiv=2304.06117
 | bibcode=2023MNRAS.522.6170R }}</ref>

}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* [http://hubblesource.stsci.edu/sources/video/clips/details/images/ngc4261_2.mpg Animation of the black hole in the center of NGC 4261]

{{Ngc45}}
{{Virgo (constellation)}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:NGC 4261}}
[[Category:Elliptical galaxies]]
[[Category:Supermassive black holes]]
[[Category:Radio galaxies]]
[[Category:Virgo Cluster]]
[[Category:Virgo (constellation)]]
[[Category:NGC objects|4261]]
[[Category:UGC objects|07360]]
[[Category:Principal Galaxies Catalogue objects|39659]]
[[Category:3C objects|270]]