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Anne’s Picture of the Day: Spiral Galaxy ESO 121-6
read more at Anne’s Astronomy News http://annesastronomynews.com/
March 9, 2013
ESO 121-6, a spiral galaxy in Pictor
Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA
ESO 121-6 is a spiral galaxy which lies in the southern constellation of Pictor (The Painter’s Easel), and it belongs to a group of about 50 galaxies, all loosely bound to one another by gravity. The galaxy is receding from us at roughly 1208 kilometers per second.
The galaxy has patchy, loosely-wound arms and a relatively faint central bulge. But, viewed almost exactly side-on, the intricate structure of the swirling arms is hidden, although the full length of the galaxy can be seen — including the intense glow from the central bulge, a dense region of tightly packed young stars sitting at the center of the spiral arms.
Tendrils of dark dust can be seen across the frame, partially obscuring the bright center of the galaxy and continuing out towards the smattering of stars at its edges, where the dust lanes and shapes melt into the inky background.
This image is taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. Numerous nearby stars and galaxies are visible as small smudges in the surrounding sky.
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2013-03-09 05:30:42
Source: http://annesastronomynews.com/annes-picture-of-the-day-spiral-galaxy-eso-121-6/
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