M106 Position and Visibility Tonight
Where is M106 right now?
Twilight begins at 18:26 local time. At that moment, M106 will be 26° above the horizon toward the north-west.
M106 visibility on 2026-09-07
M106 rise and set timetable
| Time | Elevation | |
| M106 transit | 12:22 | 80° |
| Moonset | 14:56 | 60° |
| Sunset | 17:27 | 35° |
| Civil sunset | 17:55 | 31° |
| Twilight start | 18:26 | 26° |
| Astronomical observing session begins | 18:58 | 21° |
| M106 set | 22:04 | |
Moonrise, 21% illuminated  | 23:21 | -4° |
| M106 rise | 02:37 | |
| Astronomical observing session ends | 03:13 | 3° |
| Twilight end | 03:45 | 6° |
| Civil sunrise | 04:17 | 10° |
| Sunrise | 04:44 | 13° |
Track M106 Position Throughout the Night
← 7 September 2026 →
| Time | |
| Altitude | |
| Azimuth |
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
DSS Red
DSS Near-Infrared
DSS Composite Image
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.
Finder Chart for M106
| Object name | M106 |
| Field of view | |
| Limiting magnitude | |
| M106 coordinates | 12.31597, 47.30397 |
| Center coordinates | 12.31597, 47.30397 |
M106 Passage Through Night
Current position of M106
| Time | 13:29 |
| Latitude | 37.3541 |
| Longitude | -121.955 |
| Elevation | 74° |
| Azimuth | 314° |
When Is M106 Visible Throughout the Year?
M106 will become visible again around October 14 after moving far enough from the Sun.
| Date | Mon, 7 September 2026 |
| Twilight start | 18:54 |
| Twilight end | 03:07 |
| Twilight duration | 8h 13m |
| Rise | 02:37 |
| Set | 22:00 |
| Elevation at transit | 80° |
| Transit time | 12:18 |
| Equatorial coordinates | RA: 12h 18m 57s", Dec: 47° 18' 14s |
| Magnitude | 9 |
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
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 | 74.2° |
| Azimuth | 314.4° |
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.