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Constillation

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Pic Notes

NGC 3521 has a morphological classification of SAB(rs)bc, which indicates that it is a spiral galaxy with a trace of a bar structure (SAB), a weak inner ring (rs), and moderate to loosely wound arm structure (bc). The bar structure is difficult to discern, both because it has a low ellipticity and the galaxy is at a high inclination of 72.7° to the line of sight. The relatively bright bulge is nearly 3/4 the size of the bar, which may indicate the former is quite massive. The nucleus of this galaxy is classified as an HII LINER, as there is an H II region at the core and the nucleus forms a low-ionization nuclear emission-line region.

NGC 3521 is structurally similar to the Milky Way; additionally, its supermassive black hole has a similar mass to that of the Milky Way, at about 7 million solar masses.

Supernova
One supernova has been observed in NGC 3521: SN 2024aecx (type Ic, mag. 14.543) was discovered by ATLAS on 16 December 2024. Astronomers originally classified it as type IIb, but spectroscopy suggests this supernova is very similar to SN 1994I.

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