A look at IC 1101: The Largest-Known Galaxy in the universe

Aug 04, 2024, 18:23 IST

Harshit Sabarwal

All images: NASA, Hubble Space Telescope

Aug 04, 2024, 18:23 IST

Harshit Sabarwal

The Discovery of IC 1101

IC 1101 is the largest-known galaxy in the universe. Its radius is a mind-boggling 1.9569 million light years. The galaxy was discovered by William Herschel on June 19, 1790.

IC 1101's Size Compared to the Milky Way

IC 1101 is 40 times larger than our Milky Way Galaxy. If we were to place IC 1101 where the Milky Way is, it would completely engulf our neighbouring Andromeda Galaxy which is 2.5 million light-years away.

IC 1101's Distance from Earth

According to the Universe Guide, IC 1101 distance from Earth is 1.045 billion light-years.

Over 100 Trillion Stars inside IC 1101

IC 1101 likely contains over 100 trillion stars. As an elliptical galaxy, IC 1101 contains an abundance of low to medium-mass red and yellow stars, most of which are quite old, according to WorldAtlas.

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