What is the Triangulum Galaxy?
The Triangulum Galaxy is a mid-sized galaxy located approximately 3 million light years away in the constellation Triangulum, the triangle. It is the most distant object visible with the unaided eye, and can be sighted only in very dark skies. Also referred to as Messier 33 or NGC 59, Triangulum is sometimes incorrectly referred to as the Pinwheel Galaxy, but another, larger galaxy already bears this name. Triangulum is sometimes confused with NGC 752, a nearby open cluster with greater luminosity from our vantage point. The arms of Triangulum only extend about a half-turn around the galaxy at most, giving the arms a “twist factor” similar to those of the Milky Way. Triangulum is a member of the Local Group of gravitationally bound galaxies, the largest of which are the Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy. The nearby Pisces Dwarf Galaxy may be a satellite galaxy of Triangulum, and Triangulum itself may be a gravitationally bound companion of Andromeda. Out of a couple dozen galaxies in
