The morphological classification of NGC 4589 is E2 in the De Vaucouleurs system, Indicating this is an elliptical galaxy with a ratio of 5:4 between the major and minor axes. It is a bright source of X-ray emission and is a LINER-type galaxy. There is a dusty disk that is aligned with the minor axis, which is likely the remnant of a merger with a gas-rich galaxy. NGC 4589 has a large population of globular clusters, estimated at 640±50. A small population of young star clusters with an age of less than a billion years are located in the central region.[4]
The calcium-rich type Ib supernovaSN 2005cz was discovered on July 28, 2005.[10] The progenitor star may have formed near the young stellar clusters at the core of NGC 4589.[4]