NGC 4631 (also known as the
Whale Galaxy or
Caldwell 32) is a
barred spiral galaxy in the
constellationCanes Venatici. This galaxy's slightly distorted wedge shape gives it the appearance of a herring or a whale, hence its nickname.=10.5px Because this nearby galaxy is seen edge-on from
Earth, professional astronomers observe this galaxy to better understand the gas and stars located outside the plane of the galaxy.
NGC 4656/57 is a highly warped
barred spiral galaxy located in the
constellationCanes Venatici and is sometimes informally called the
Hockey Stick Galaxies or the
Crowbar Galaxy. Its unusual shape is thought to be due to an interaction between
NGC 4656,
NGC 4631, and
NGC 4627.=10.5px The galaxy is a member of the
NGC 4631 Group. A Luminous Blue Variable in "super-outburst" was discovered in NGC 4656/57 on March 21, 2005.NGC 4631 has a nearby companion
dwarf elliptical galaxy,
NGC 4627. NGC 4627 and NGC 4631 together were listed in the
Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies as an example of a "double galaxy" or a galaxy pair.NGC 4631 and NGC 4627 are part of the
NGC 4631 Group, a group of galaxies that also includes the interacting galaxies
NGC 4656 and
NGC 4657.=10.5px However, exact group identification is problematic because this galaxy and others lie in a part of the sky that is relatively crowded. Estimates of the number of galaxies in this group range from 5
[9] to 27,
[12] and all studies identify very different member galaxies for this group.
Source: Wikipedia 
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