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| IC 342 | |
|---|---|
| Name | IC 342 |
| Type | SAB(rs)cd |
| Epoch | J2000 |
| Constellation | Camelopardalis |
| Redshift | 0.000103 |
| Appmag v | 9.1 |
| Size v | 21′ × 20′ |
| Names | UGC 2847, PGC 13826, IRAS F03421+6754 |
IC 342 is a large, nearby unbarred to weakly barred spiral galaxy visible in the constellation Camelopardalis. It is notable for its bright spiral arms, active star-forming regions, substantial interstellar medium, and the observational challenges posed by foreground extinction from the Milky Way. IC 342 has been the subject of detailed studies by observatories such as the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, the Very Large Array, and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array.
Discovered in the late 19th century by Edwin Foster, IC 342 received catalog designations in the Index Catalogue and later cross-identifications in the Uppsala General Catalogue and the Principal Galaxies Catalogue. Historical observations by visual astronomers such as Heinrich d'Arrest and photographic surveys by the Palomar Observatory Sky Survey helped establish its modern identity. Subsequent compilations including the Infrared Astronomical Satellite catalogs and the Two Micron All Sky Survey incorporated IC 342 under names like UGC 2847 and PGC 13826.
Morphological studies classify IC 342 as a late-type spiral (SAB(rs)cd) in catalogs produced by the Third Reference Catalogue of Bright Galaxies and the de Vaucouleurs system. Imaging with the Hubble Space Telescope and photometry from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey reveal loosely wound arms, numerous H II regions cataloged in surveys like the Revised Bologna Catalogue, and a small nuclear bar or oval suggested by kinematic maps from the European Southern Observatory instruments. Structural decomposition studies using data from the Spitzer Space Telescope and the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer separate disk, bulge, and spiral components similar to analyses used for Messier 101 and NGC 6946.
Distance estimates to IC 342 have varied owing to foreground extinction by dust in the Milky Way's Perseus Arm and local velocity field perturbations related to the Local Group and the Maffei Group. Methods applied include the Cepheid variable distance scale, the Tip of the Red Giant Branch technique using photometry from the Hubble Space Telescope, surface brightness fluctuations comparable to those used for M81 and red giant branch studies linked to the Large Magellanic Cloud calibration. Reported distances typically range near ~3 Mpc based on arguments by teams affiliated with the Carnegie Institution for Science and surveys like the Extragalactic Distance Database.
IC 342 hosts intense star formation traced by H-alpha emission cataloged in surveys such as the Palomar Transient Factory and by far-infrared fluxes measured by the Infrared Space Observatory and the Herschel Space Observatory. Young stellar clusters identified with the Hubble Space Telescope and ultraviolet imaging from the Galaxy Evolution Explorer show populations analogous to those in M33 and NGC 2403. Studies of massive star formation use spectroscopy from the Keck Observatory and the Very Large Telescope to probe initial mass function comparisons related to work on NGC 1569 and NGC 4214.
The interstellar medium in IC 342 contains abundant molecular gas mapped in CO lines by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, the IRAM 30m Telescope, and the Nobeyama Radio Observatory; these data parallel molecular surveys of NGC 6946 and the Central Molecular Zone in the Milky Way. Dust emission observed by the Spitzer Space Telescope and the Herschel Space Observatory shows cold and warm components similar to those in M82 and Arp 220. The nucleus exhibits a compact starburst and mild LINER-like signatures examined by spectrographs on the Gemini Observatory and the Subaru Telescope, comparable to nuclear phenomena seen in NGC 2903 and NGC 4736.
IC 342 resides near groups including the IC 342/Maffei Group complex and has putative companions identified in radio surveys by the Arecibo Observatory and photometric follow-ups by the Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope. Candidate dwarf satellite galaxies comparable to members of the Local Group such as NGC 6822 and IC 10 have been cataloged in surveys like the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and targeted in searches using the Subaru Telescope's wide-field cameras.
Imaging history spans visual discovery, photographic plates at the Palomar Observatory Sky Survey, and modern high-resolution imaging from the Hubble Space Telescope, infrared mapping by the Spitzer Space Telescope and the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, radio interferometry by the Very Large Array and the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope, and millimeter mapping by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. Multiwavelength campaigns coordinated by institutions such as the European Southern Observatory and the National Radio Astronomy Observatory produced composite images highlighting spiral structure and dusty lanes akin to presentations of Messier 81 and Messier 83.
IC 342 serves as a laboratory for studies of spiral structure, starburst nuclei, molecular cloud formation, and distance scale calibration used by groups including the Carnegie Institution for Science and teams working with the Hubble Space Telescope Key Projects. Ongoing research connects its properties to theoretical frameworks developed by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy and the Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics on topics such as disk stability, feedback processes studied in galaxies like NGC 253, and the role of environment in dwarf galaxy accretion observed in the Local Group.
Category:Spiral galaxies Category:Camelopardalis