NGC 4452: An Extremely Thin Galaxy
Explanation:
Why is there a line segment on the sky?
In one of the more precise alignments known in the universe, what is pictured above
is actually a disk galaxy being seen almost perfectly edge on.
The image from the
Hubble Space Telescope is
a spectacular visual reminder of just how
thin
disk
galaxies can be.
NGC 4452, a galaxy in the nearby
Virgo Cluster of Galaxies,
is so thin that it is actually
difficult to determine what type of disk galaxy it is.
Its lack of a visible dust lane indicates that it is a low-dust
lenticular galaxy, although
it is still possible that a view from on top would reveal spiral structure.
The
unusual
stellar line segment spans about 35,000
light years from end to end.
Near
NGC 4452's center is a slight bulge of stars, while
hundreds of background galaxies
are visible far in the distance.
Galaxies that
appear this thin are rare mostly because our Earth must reside
(nearly) in the extrapolated
planes of their thin galactic disks.
Galaxies that actually
are this thin are relatively common -- for example
our own
Milky Way Galaxy is thought to be about this
thin.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
