| NGC 1705 | |
|---|---|
NGC 1705. Credit: NASA. | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Pictor |
| Right ascension | 04h 54m 13.500s |
| Declination | −53° 21′ 39.82″ |
| Redshift | 633 ± 6 km/s |
| Distance | 16.6 ± 2.0 Mly (5.1 ± 0.6 Mpc) |
| Group or cluster | Dorado Group |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 12.56±0.03 |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | SA0− pec or BCD |
| Apparent size (V) | 1′.86 × 1′.45 |
| Other designations | |
| PGC 16282 | |
NGC 1705 is a peculiar lenticular galaxy and a blue compact dwarf galaxy (BCD) in the southern constellation of Pictor, positioned less than a degree to the east of Iota Pictoris, and is undergoing a starburst. With an apparent visual magnitude of 12.6 it requires a telescope to observe. It is estimated to be approximately 17 million light-years from the Earth, and is a member of the Dorado Group.
This is a relatively isolated galaxy, with its nearest neighbors being more than 500 kpc distant. However, its neutral hydrogen disk shows a significant amount of warp, suggesting that the outer gas is still settling into place. The mass models of the galaxy suggest the dominant source of mass is a dark matter halo. It has a super star cluster located near the galactic center, and shows strong galactic winds. Designated NGC1750–1, this cluster has a maximum radius of 2.85±0.50 pc and is 12±6 Myr old.
The major starburst activity is happening at the core of the galaxy, within the central ~150 pc, and this is providing the main ionizing source out to distance of ~1 kpc or more. Over the last 10 million years it has added 5.7×105 M☉ worth of stars. The younger stars in the galaxy with an age below a billion years have an estimated 6×107 M☉ and are mainly concentrated near the center, while the older star populations have 2.2×108 M☉ and form a more extended distribution. The total mass of neutral hydrogen in the galaxy is estimated at (2.2±0.2)×108 M☉.