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M63 is a barred spiral commonly called the Sunflower Galaxy.
In binoculars its soft glow is readily apparent with nearby
M94 visible in the same field of view.
A telescope reveals a bright star-like core surrounded by a fainter halo.
A hint of structure and spiral arms may be glimpsed with a larger instrument and dark skies,
but the arms will remain patchy and faint.
The Sunflower Galaxy forms a physical group with the Whirlpool Galaxy (M51)
and several other smaller galaxies.
It was the first original discovery of Charles Messier's friend, Pierre Mechain,
who went on to discover more than 25 of the objects in the Messier catalog.
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