Trio of Galaxies Play Tug of War

space.com ^ | 03/03/09

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

In this image, a feather-like galaxy crosses a companion galaxy. The two components will probably merge to form a single galaxy in the future. Dubbed ESO 593-8, they are located in the constellation Sagittarius, the Archer, some 650 million light-years from Earth.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

NGC 454 is a galaxy pair composed of a large red elliptical galaxy and an irregular gas-rich blue galaxy. The system, approximately 164 million light-years away, is in the early stages of an interaction that has severely distorted both components.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

This strongly interacting pair of spiral galaxies has a resemblance to a twirling pair of ice skaters. The interaction has united the galaxies, named UGC 8335, via a bridge of material and has yanked two strongly curved tails of gas and stars from the outer parts of their "bodies." UGC 8335 is located in the constellation of Ursa Major, the Great Bear, about 400 million light-years from Earth.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

This galaxy, NGC 17, represents a merger that appears to be complete. It features a single nucleus, containing a blue central disc with delicate fine structure in the outer parts and tidal tails indicative of two former disc galaxies. The remnant shows clear signs that the merger was gas-rich and accompanied by a starburst. It is located about 250 million light-years away in the constellation Cetus, the Whale.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Arp 272 is a remarkable collision between two spiral galaxies, NGC 6050 and IC 1179, and is part of the Hercules Galaxy Cluster, located in the constellation Hercules. The two spiral galaxies, linked by their swirling arms, are located about 450 million light-years from Earth.

[scan59]

Great pictures! Thanks for posting them. Funny thing is, the collisions look like a dramatic event, but they actually took place very slowwwwwwly, over eons.

[Skooz]

BFL