The Spiral Galaxy M109 (also known as Messier Object 109, Messier 109, M109, or NGC 3992) is a spiral galaxy in the Ursa Major constellation. It was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1781. M109 is at a distance of about 55 million light years away from Earth. A spiral galaxy is a type of galaxy in the Hubble sequence which is characterized by the following physical properties: Spiral Galaxy M74 presents a face-on view of its spiral arms. ... Ursa Major is a constellation visible throughout the year in the northern hemisphere. ... Pierre François André Méchain (August 16, 1744 – September 20, 1804) was a French astronomer. ... Events January 5 - American Revolutionary War: Richmond, Virginia is burned by British naval forces led by Benedict Arnold. ... A light year, abbreviated ly, is the distance light travels in one year: roughly 9. ... Earth, also known as the Earth or Terra, is the third planet outward from the Sun. ...
A barred spiralgalaxy is a spiralgalaxy with a band of bright stars emerging from the center and running across the middle of the galaxy.
Spiral arms appear to emerge from the ends of the "bar" in these galaxies, whereas they appear to emerge directly from the core in ordinary spiralgalaxies.
When observing a distant spiralgalaxy with a rotational axis perpendicular to the line of sight, or one that appears "edge-on" to the observer, the shape of the bulge can be easily observed, and therefore quickly classified as either a barred spiral or a regular spiral.