NGC 3044

NGC 3044 is a barred spiral galaxy in the equatorial constellation of Sextans. It was discovered on December 13, 1784, by German-born English astronomer William Herschel. In 1888, Danish astronomer J. L. E. Dreyer described it as "very faint, very large, very much extended 122°". It is located at an estimated distance of million light years. In the B band of the UBV photometric system, the galaxy spans with the major axis aligned along a position angle of 113°. It is a relatively isolated galaxy with no nearby companions. R. B. Tully in 1988 assigned it as a member of the widely displaced Leo Cloud.
The morphological classification of NGC 3044 is SBc, indicating a barred spiral with somewhat loosely-wound spiral arms. It is being viewed edge-on, with a galactic plane that is inclined at an angle of to the plane of the sky. The disk appears lob-sided and disturbed, suggesting a recent merger or interaction. There is a diffuse ionized gas extending to above the center of the plane.
The stars in the galaxy have a combined mass of approximately, and the star formation rate is. The total mass of the atomic gas in this galaxy is, and it has a dust mass of. The galaxy as a whole has a dynamic mass of.
One supernova has been observed in NGC 3044: SN1983E was discovered by Natalʹja Metlova on 13 March 1983, at an offset east, south of the galaxy.