NGC 6946

NGC 6946, also known as the Fireworks galaxy, Arp 29, and Caldwell 12, is a spiral galaxy in the constellation of Cepheus and Cygnus. It is about 22.5 million light-years away from Earth. It was discovered by William Herschel in September 9, 1798. It's highly obscured by interestellar matter, and it's very close to the galactic plane. It has a third of the Milky Way’s size.

 Supernovae in NGC 6946 

Fireworks Galaxy has this name because of how many supernovae happened in the galaxy. The supernovae in this galaxy occur very frequently. In the last century a total of 9 supernovae were seen from this galaxy: SN 1917a, SN 1939c, SN 1948b, SNSN 1968d, SN 1969p, SN 1980k, SN 2002hh, SN 2004et, SN2008s.

Related pages
 Spiral galaxy
 Supernovae

 References 

Other websites
 APOD:2005 January 25 - NGC 6946

 Gemini Observatory Welcomes 2005 with Release of Galactic Fireworks Image - Gemini Observatory

Category:Spiral galaxies