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M83 is a spiral galaxy in the constellation Hydra.
It is not the easiest object to locate as it lies in a rather unremarkable region
in the longest constellation in the sky.
The reward for finding M83 soon becomes apparent,
as it is one of the best galaxies to observe with small telescopes.
Binoculars show M83 as a faint fuzzy patch but a telescope is required to glimpse spiral arms,
dark lanes and bright knots.
Medium to high magnification will aid in seeing these details.
M83 is a member of the Centaurus group of galaxies,
which is dominated by Centaurus A (NGC 5128).
Although theory predicts that a galaxy the size of M83 should experience
a supernovae approximately once every 300 years,
this galaxy has had at least 4 supernovae in the past 80 years.
M83 was the first galaxy discovered that lies outside our Local Group.
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