Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                2021 March 27

                           Exploring the Antennae
                  Image Credit & Copyright: Bernard Miller

   Explanation: Some 60 million light-years away in the southerly
   constellation Corvus, two large galaxies are colliding. Stars in the
   two galaxies, cataloged as NGC 4038 and NGC 4039, very rarely collide
   in the course of the ponderous cataclysm that lasts for hundreds of
   millions of years. But the galaxies' large clouds of molecular gas and
   dust often do, triggering furious episodes of star formationi near the
   center of the cosmic wreckage. Spanning over 500 thousand light-years,
   this stunning view also reveals new star clusters and matter flung far
   from the scene of the accident by gravitational tidal forces. The
   remarkably sharp ground-based image includes narrowband data that
   highlights the characteristic red glow of atomic hydrogen gas in
   star-forming regions. The suggestive overall visual appearance of the
   extended arcing structures gives the galaxy pair its popular name - The
   Antennae.

                      Tomorrow's picture: floating away
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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