M106 Position and Visibility Tonight

Where is M106 right now?

M106 is located in the constellation Canes Venatici. It is currently below the horizon and is not visible from your location.

Open the interactive guide to M106’s position and path tonight

M106 tonight

M106 visibility on 2026-11-07

M106 Visible from early morning until sunrise

M106 rise and set timetable

	Time	Elevation
Moonrise, 11% illuminated	03:18	0°
M106 transit	09:16	43°
M106 set	15:15
Moonset	15:40	-4°
Astronomical observing session begins	18:58	-34°
M106 rise	03:13
Astronomical observing session ends	04:28	13°
Twilight end (−12°)	04:53	17°
Civil sunrise	05:18	21°
Sunrise	05:41	24°

Track M106 position throughout the night

← 7 November 2026 →

Time
Altitude
Azimuth

Shift the map to change the time and observe M106 changing position in the night sky.

M106 - Spiral Galaxy

M106 is a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Canes Venatici. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781 and later cataloged by Charles Messier. M106 is known for its bright core and well-defined spiral arms.

M106 spans about 135,000 light-years across and contains a massive population of stars, gas, and dust. The galaxy is approximately 25 million light-years away from Earth and has an apparent magnitude of 8.4, making it visible with binoculars or a small telescope.

M106 — Image Gallery

DSS Blue

Blue images highlight younger, hotter stars that emit strongly at blue wavelengths.

DSS Red

Red images reveal older, cooler stars and emission nebulae glowing strongly in hydrogen-alpha light.

DSS Near-Infrared

Near-infrared images penetrate dust that obscures visible light and reveal hidden structures.

DSS Composite Image

DSS color images combine blue, red and often near-infrared exposures into a composite view.

The images come from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2), produced at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) under contract with NASA, using data from UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), European Southern Observatory (ESO), National Geographic Society-Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS II).

Special thanks to National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, California Institute of Technology for their significant contributions.

M106 Passage Through Night

Double-click to unlock the map.

Current position of M106

Time	00:20
Latitude	0
Longitude	0
Elevation	-28°
Azimuth	34°

Here you can see the current position of M106 on the map, as well as its positions for rise and set. This tool lets you track its movement throughout the night with accurate, up-to-date information.

When Is M106 Visible Throughout the Year?

M106 will become visible again around November 29 after moving far enough from the Sun.

Date	Sun, 8 November 2026
Astronomical observing session begins	18:55
Astronomical observing session ends	04:23
Astronomical observing duration	9h 28m
Rise	03:09
Set	15:07
Elevation at transit	43°
Transit time	09:08
Equatorial coordinates	RA: 12h 18m 57s", Dec: 47° 18' 14s
Magnitude	9
Constellation	Canes Venatici

The graph illustrates the annual visibility pattern of M106, including its daily appearances and transit times. The vertical axis shows the hours of the day and the horizontal axis spans the year. The reddish area marks when the object is above the horizon, while the white line marks its daily transit.
You can also see when M106 is visible throughout the year in a table with exact rise, transit, and set times for each date.

Astrometric and Physical Parameters of M106

Coordinates and Visibility

Right Ascension	12h 18m 57s
Declination	47° 18′ 14″
Magnitude	9.29
Constellation	Canes Venatici
Elevation	-27.8°
Azimuth	33.8°

Data Credits

The deep-sky information on this page comes from the OpenNGC project developed by Matteo Verga. OpenNGC provides detailed catalog data for nebulae, galaxies, clusters and other deep-sky objects.

For details or contributions, visit the official repository: OpenNGC GitHub.

Observation Settings