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Credit & Copyright: Nikolaus Sulzenauer
Explanation:
The see the full length of this blue whale, scroll right.
NGC 4631 is a
big beautiful
spiral galaxy seen edge-on at only about 30 million
light-years away.
This galaxy's slightly distorted wedge shape led to its popular moniker of the Whale
galaxy.
The Whale's dark interstellar
dust clouds and young bright
blue star clusters highlight
this panoramic color image.
The band of NGC 4631 not only appears similar to
band of our own Milky Way Galaxy,
but its size is truly similar to our Milky Way as well.
The galaxy is also known to have spouted a halo of
hot gas glowing in x-rays.
The Whale galaxy spans about 140,000 light years and
can be seen with a small telescope toward the constellation of the
Hunting Dogs
(Canes Venatici).
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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: NGC 4631 - spiral galaxy
Publications with words: NGC 4631 - spiral galaxy
See also: