Observer's guide
About Spindle Galaxy
Spindle Galaxy (M102) is catalogued as a lenticular (s0) galaxy in Draco. Its J2000 position is RA 15:06:30.20, Dec +55:46:06.0, corresponding to 226.6232 degrees RA and 55.7633 degrees Dec. The local catalogue places it about 40,000,000 light-years away. Its referenced angular extent is approximately 6.31 by 2.69 arcminutes.
Observing tips
StarWatchr rates this as a hard target at magnitude 9.9. It is associated with summer observing, with midnight placement typically strongest around May. From 52 degrees north its theoretical meridian altitude is about 86.2 degrees; local horizons and the live altitude chart determine the practical window.
Because it is faint, use a larger aperture where possible, avoid bright Moon conditions, and use averted vision.
What to expect
The SIMBAD classification for the matched source is SyG. SIMBAD records the morphology as S. A published radial velocity value is 756.9 km/s. The SIMBAD record currently connects it to 579 bibliographic references.
At roughly 6.3 arcminutes across, it benefits from a narrower field and adequate image scale. Use the listed 6.31 by 2.69 arcminute extent to check framing, and treat catalogue magnitude as integrated brightness rather than a direct measure of visual contrast.