M51: X Rays from the Whirlpool
Explanation:
What if we X-rayed an entire spiral galaxy?
This was done (again) recently by NASA's
Chandra X-ray Observatory
for the nearby interacting galaxies known as the
Whirlpool (M51).
Hundreds of glittering x-ray stars are present in the
above
Chandra image of the spiral and its neighbor.
The image is a conglomerate of
X-ray light
from Chandra and visible light from the
Hubble Space Telescope.
The number of
luminous x-ray
sources, likely neutron star and black hole
binary
systems within the confines of
M51, is unusually high
for normal spiral or elliptical galaxies and suggests this cosmic
whirlpool has experienced
intense
bursts of massive star formation.
The bright cores of both galaxies, NGC 5194 and NGC 5195
(right and left respectively), also exhibit high-energy
activity.
In
this false-color image where X-rays are depicted in purple,
diffuse X-ray emission typically results from
multi-million degree gas heated by
supernova explosions.
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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.
