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Credit & Copyright: R Jay Gabany
(Blackbird Obs.)
Collaboration: I. Trujillo, I. Martinez-Valpuesta, D. Martinez-Delgado ( IAC); J. Penarrubia (IoA Cambridge); M. Pohlen (Cardiff)
Explanation:
Beautiful island universe
M94 lies
a mere 15 million light-years
distant in the northern constellation of the hunting dogs,
Canes
Venatici.
A popular target for astronomers
the brighter inner part of the face-on spiral
galaxy is about 30,000 light-years across.
Traditionally, deep images have been interpreted as showing
M94's inner spiral region surrounded by a faint, broad ring of stars.
But a
new multi-wavelength investigation
has revealed previously
undetected spiral arms
sweeping across the
outskirts of the galaxy's disk, an outer disk actively engaged
in star formation.
At optical wavelengths, M94's outer spiral arms are followed in this
remarkable discovery image,
processed to enhance the outer disk structure.
Background galaxies are visible through the faint outer arms, while
the three spiky foreground stars are in our own Milky Way galaxy.
Collaboration: I. Trujillo, I. Martinez-Valpuesta, D. Martinez-Delgado ( IAC); J. Penarrubia (IoA Cambridge); M. Pohlen (Cardiff)
Note:
An APOD editor will review great space images tonight in
Houghton, Michigan.
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NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: star formation - M 94 - spiral galaxy
Publications with words: star formation - M 94 - spiral galaxy
See also: