Central NGC 1316: After Galaxies Collide
Explanation:
How did this strange-looking galaxy form?
Astronomers turn detectives when trying to figure out
the cause of unusual jumbles of stars, gas, and dust like NGC 1316.
Inspection indicates that NGC 1316 is an enormous
elliptical galaxy
that somehow includes dark dust lanes usually found in a
spiral galaxy.
Detailed images taken by the
Hubble Space Telescope
shows details, however, that help in reconstructing the history of this
gigantic tangle.
Deep and wide images show
huge collisional shells,
while deep central images reveal fewer
globular clusters of stars toward NGC 1316's interior.
Such effects are expected in galaxies that have undergone collisions or merging with
other
galaxies in the past few billion
years.
The dark knots and lanes of
dust, prominent in the
featured image,
indicate that one or more of the devoured galaxies were spiral galaxies.
NGC 1316
spans about 50,000 light years and lies about 60 million
light years away
toward the constellation of the Furnace
(Fornax).
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.
