NGC 3717: A Nearly Sideways Spiral Galaxy
Explanation:
Some spiral galaxies are seen nearly sideways.
Most bright stars in
spiral galaxies
swirl around the center in a disk,
and seen from the side, this disk can be appear quite thin.
Some spiral galaxies appear
even
thinner than
NGC 3717, which is actually seen tilted just a bit.
Spiral galaxies form disks because the original
gas collided
with itself and
cooled as it fell inward.
Planets may orbit in
disks for similar reasons.
The
featured image by the
Hubble Space Telescope
shows a light-colored central bulge composed of older stars beyond
filaments of orbiting dark brown
dust.
NGC 3717 spans about 100,000
light years
and lies about 60 million light years away toward the constellation of the Water
Snake
(Hydra).
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.
