About NGC 4501 (M88)

NGC 4501 is frequently observed by amateur astronomers and presents itself as a diffuse object. It is quite faint.

Current visibility

Right now it is at about 54° altitude and reaches 76° around 12:19 AM.

It stays above 30° for roughly 8 hours.

Galaxies are sensitive to light pollution, structure becomes clearer under good conditions.

Observing tips

It can be challenging under typical skies.

What to expect

With larger apertures, more structure becomes visible.

It is more subtle than brighter Dso objects.

Type

Spiral Galaxy

Constellation

Coma Berenices

Distance

60000000 ly

Size

6.9' x 3.9'

Season

Spring

Difficulty

Moderate

Magnitude

9.6