Current observations allow the possibility that M89 may be nearly perfectly spherical. Distinct flattening as ellipsoids is found in all easily measurable comparators up to a few times of its distance. The alternative explanation is that it is an ellipsoid oriented so that it appears spherical to an observer on Earth.
The galaxy features a surrounding structure of gas and dust, extending up to 150,000 light-years and jets of heated particles up to two-thirds of that.[4] This indicates that it may have once been an active quasar or radio galaxy.[4] M89 has an extensive and complex system of surrounding shells and plumes, indicating that it has seen one or several notable mergers.[5]
M89 also has a large array of globular clusters. A 2006 survey estimates that there are 2,000 ± 700 of these within 25′. This compares to 150 to 200 of these thought (among which many proven) to surround the Milky Way.[9]
^Graham, Alister W. (November 2008), "Populating the Galaxy Velocity Dispersion - Supermassive Black Hole Mass Diagram: A Catalogue of (Mbh, σ) Values", Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia, 25 (4): 167–175, arXiv:0807.2549, Bibcode:2008PASA...25..167G, doi:10.1071/AS08013, S2CID89905.