M86

Messier 86 is one of the brightest member galaxies of the Virgo Cluster of Galaxies and is close to that cluster's apparent center. At this time, it is not clear whether M86 is an elliptical or a lenticular but we do know that it is physically large and has a number of globular clusters in orbit around it. This galaxy is moving toward us at the velocity of about 270 miles per second, making it the fastest in approach of any Messier object. Although not shown on my photos, M84 and M86 are close enough together in the sky that deep images of the two show their outer most portions almost overlapping. But since we do not know the exact distances of the two, it is entirely possible that one is a bit closer to us than the other, making the distance between them sufficient to avoid any substantial gravitational distortions. Both M84 and M86 can easily be found from M87, which lies about 1 degree southeast.

Image taken through high thin clouds on Feb. 26, 2012, with the C-14 operating at F:3.5 and the ST-8 camera binned 2 X 2. Exposure is 7 1/2 minutes.