Messier 96 (M96)

Brightest member of the Leo I group, its disc slightly warped and dust lanes displaced.

Core Principles & Analysis

• Its asymmetrical arms and offset dust suggest a recent gravitational encounter.
• Méchain discovered it in 1781, four days before M95.
• A supernova appeared in it in 1998.

Specifications & Metrics

• GALAXY TYPE: Spiral (SAab)
• DISTANCE: ~31 million light-years