Hubble views a tranquil galaxy with an explosive past

Mon, 17 Jan 2022 23:02:22 GMT
Space Daily

Baltimore MD (SPX) Jan 14, 2022 The lazily winding spiral arms of the spectacular galaxy NGC 976...

The lazily winding spiral arms of the spectacular galaxy NGC 976 fill the frame of this image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.

This spiral galaxy lies around 150 million light-years from the Milky Way in the constellation Aries.

Despite its tranquil appearance, NGC 976 has played host to one of the most violent astronomical phenomena known - a supernova explosion.

These cataclysmically violent events take place at the end of the lives of massive stars and can outshine entire galaxies for a short period.

Supernovae are also a useful aid for astronomers who measure the distances to faraway galaxies.

This image - which was created using data from Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 - comes from a large collection of Hubble observations of nearby galaxies which host supernovae as well as a pulsating class of stars known as Cepheid variables.

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter$5+ Billed Monthly SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal Hubble sees cosmic clues in a galactic duo Paris Jan 10, 2022.

This spectacular image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope captures the spiral galaxy NGC 105, which lies roughly 215 million light-years away in the constellation Pisces.

While it looks like NGC 105 is plunging edge-on into a neighboring galaxy, this is just a circumstance of perspective.

NGC 105's elongated neighbor is actually far more distant.

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