NGC 4164
DSS image of NGC 4164
Overlaid DSS image of NGC 4164, 30' x 30' with north at top and west to the right

Aladin viewer for the region around NGC 4164
PGC 38877, SDSS J121205.45+131220.3

Type  Galaxy
Magnitude  15.7
Size  0.387' x 0.333' @ 110°
Right Ascension  12h 12' 5.5"  (2000)
Declination  13° 12' 20" N
Constellation  Virgo
Description  vF, 2'-3' s of 4165
Classification  E3
Observing Notes

Harold Corwin

NGC 4164 and NGC 4165. There is no doubt concerning the identifications of these two galaxies, yet UGC missed the NGC number for NGC 4164. This is probably just an oversight. However, one comment: Tempel expresses some surprise that d'Arrest should have missed NGC 4164; Tempel seems to think that the two galaxies are nearly equal in brightness. However, NGC 4164 is a full magnitude fainter, and much smaller than NGC 4165. There is a 15th magnitude star about 30 arcsec south-following that may have provided the illusion of a brighter nebula in Tempel's relatively small 11-inch refractor. Still, I'm not at all surprised that d'Arrest picked up NGC 4165 alone.

NGC 4165 itself is identical to IC 3035, which is from Schwassmann's list of photographically discovered nebulae in the Virgo Cluster. There can be no doubt about this as Schwassmann included other NGC objects, and his position falls much closer to NGC 4165 than to the tiny companion just north-preceding. Nilson realized this, too, and corrected the mistaken entry in CGCG where the north-preceding galaxy is called IC 3035. Since Schwassmann was working on a plate taken with a telescope of 6-inches aperture, it's doubtful that the fainter galaxy is on the plate at all (the plate, by the way, has been lost. Wayne Johnson requested a print of it from Heidelberg along with the other prints of the discovery plates for many of Wolf's IC objects, but Schwassmann's plate could not be found).
NGC Notes by Harold Corwin
Other Data Sources for NGC 4164
Nearby objects for NGC 4164
36 objects found within 60'
IC 3017 IC 3018 IC 3019
IC 3021 IC 3024 IC 3027
IC 3029 IC 3030 IC 3031
IC 3033 IC 3034 IC 3036
IC 3039 IC 3041 IC 3044
IC 3045 IC 3046 IC 3047
IC 3048 IC 3052 IC 3054
IC 3056 IC 3058 IC 3059
IC 3060 IC 3061 IC 3062
IC 3066 IC 3070 IC 3073
IC 3078 IC 3080 IC 771
NGC 4165 NGC 4168 NGC 4189
Credits...

Drawings, descriptions, and CCD photos are copyright Andrew Cooper unless otherwise noted, no usage without permission.

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NGC 4164