NGC 4709 is an elliptical galaxy[3] located in the constellation Centaurus.[4] It is considered to be a member of the Centaurus Cluster[5][6] and is the dominant member of a small group of galaxies known as "Cen 45"[7] which is currently merging with the main Centaurus Cluster (Cen 30)[8] even though the two subclusters' line of sight redshift velocities differ by about 1500 km/s.[9] NGC 4709 was discovered by astronomer James Dunlop on May 7, 1826.[10]
Distance estimates
Lucey et al. suggests that NGC 4709 and the Cen 45 subgroup lie at about the same distance as the main Centaurus Cluster[11][8] which is about 150 Mly (45 Mpc).[2]
^ abNew horizons in globular cluster astronomy : proceedings of a conference held at Università di Padova, Padova, Italy, 24-28 June, 2002. King, Ivan R., Piotto, G. (Giampaolo) (1st ed.). San Francisco, Calif.: Astronomical Society of the Pacific. 2003. ISBN978-1583811436. OCLC54022703.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)