Located in the constellation "Aries" NGC 772 renders an interactive Galaxy, as it interfers with the small elliptical galaxy NGC 770, which can be found in the image right below the main object (the ellipse's longitudinal axis is vertical here). In fact 770 is responsible for the distorsion of the spiral-arms of 772; Gravitational forces cause 772's typical shape.

In a distance of some 130 Mio LY the galaxy appears rather bright at 10m3 in the night skies for a visual observer. The apparent size of 772 measures about 7.2 by 4.3 arc minutes which makes it a worthwhile target in a moderate telescope.

Discovered on 27th of November 1785 by William Herschel 2 Supernovas have been observed ever since - photografically of course. These 2 SN showed up in 2003 - the image cannot reveal any sign of those SNs - too much time has passed meanwhile, and the remnants cannot be observed from earth any longer.

What makes that elliptical galaxy NGC 770 really special is its counterrotating core, which was discribed by professional astronomers in June 2005. Click HERE to learn more.