This interacting group contains several galaxies (called Arp 194), along with
a "cosmic fountain" of stars, gas and dust that stretches over 100,000 light-years.
Credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Posted on 04/21/2009 9:21:30 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
To commemorate almost two decades of photographing the wonders of the universe, the Hubble Space Telescope captured an image of a peculiar group of interacting galaxies that contains a "cosmic fountain" of stars, gas and dust that stretches about 100,000 light years.
Over the past 19 years, Hubble has taken many images of galactic collisions and close encounters.
The new image of a trio of galaxies, called Arp 194, looks as if of the galaxies has sprung a leak. The bright blue streamer seen in the image is really a stretched spiral arm full of newborn blue stars. This stellar activity typically happens when two galaxies interact and gravitationally tug at each other.
Hubble's resolution shows clearly that the stream of material lies in front of the southern component of Arp 194, as shown by the dust that is silhouetted around the star cluster complexes.
Resembling a pair of owl's eyes, the two nuclei of the colliding galaxies can be seen in the process of merging at the upper left of the image. The bizarre blue bridge of material extending out from the northern component looks as if it connects to a third galaxy but in reality this galaxy is in the background and not connected at all.
The details of the interactions among the multiple galaxies that make up Arp 194 are complex. The system was most likely disrupted by a previous collision or close encounter. The shapes of all the galaxies involved have been distorted by their gravitational interactions with one another.
Arp 194, located in the constellation of Cepheus, resides approximately 600 million light-years away from Earth. Arp 194 is one of thousands of interacting and merging galaxies known in our nearby Universe.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
This interacting group contains several galaxies (called Arp 194), along with
a "cosmic fountain" of stars, gas and dust that stretches over 100,000 light-years.
Credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Kewl
HubbleSite
http://hubblesite.org/
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Hubble Celebrates Its 19th Anniversary with a “Fountain of Youth”
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2009/18/
Image download page
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2009/18/image/a/
Women and minorities impacted most.
I'll see your fountain and raise you some nearby blue stardust in NGC 1333, only 1000 light-years distant.
Yeah. Rough neighborhood. How can they possibly sleep at night with all those stars and planets and stuff running into each other...?
Why is it that data from the Hubble Telescope doesn’t seem to interest religious leaders?
Send these photos to Obama with the message, “Do you feel insignificant yet?”
You’re kidding, right?
Just a few weeks ago, they were cheering the “eye of God” and the “hand in the sky” astronomical features over here.
I know this is a really dumb question, but since the last servicing of the Hubble is due in May of this year...what comes after Hubble???
There is a replacement in the works. One with updated and new features.
Breathtaking.
Ay-yuh. Me, too.
We are DOOMED, Obama’s fault
My wife just found out that a lot of the stars we see in the night sky disappeared millions of years ago. She was pretty freaked out about it. I can’t say that I’m a big space fan either. It’s too weird.
Begs the question of how we should really look at such images, knowing that the light from different parts differs across millenia. We're not seeing a snapshot of an object in time, we're seeing the culmination of light which coincidentally showed up to form a snapshot today - but which took a long time to get together.
Can I buy some pot from you?
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