Credit & Copyright: ESA/Hubble and
NASA
Explanation:
Beautiful island universe
Messier 94 lies
a mere 15 million light-years
distant in the northern constellation of the hunting dogs,
Canes
Venatici.
A popular target for earth-based astronomers,
the face-on spiral galaxy is about 30,000 light-years across,
with spiral arms sweeping through the
outskirts of its broad disk.
But this Hubble
Space Telescope field of view spans about
7,000 light-years or so across M94's central region.
The sharp close-up examines the galaxy's compact,
bright nucleus and prominent inner dust lanes,
surrounded by a remarkable bluish ring of young,
massive stars.
The massive stars in the ring are all likely less than 10 million
years old, indicating the galaxy experienced a well-defined
era of rapid star formation.
As a result, while the small, bright nucleus is typical of the
Seyfert
class of active galaxies, M94 is also known as a
starburst galaxy.
Because M94 is relatively nearby, astronomers can explore
in detail
reasons for the galaxy's burst of star formation.
January February March April May June July August September October November December |
|
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
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: M 94 - starburst galaxy - Seyfert galaxy
Publications with words: M 94 - starburst galaxy - Seyfert galaxy
See also:
- APOD: 2024 October 9 Á M106: A Spiral Galaxy with a Strange Center
- APOD: 2023 June 7 Á M94: A Double Ring Galaxy
- In the Arms of NGC 1097
- Starburst Galaxy M94 from Hubble
- NGC 5643: Nearby Spiral Galaxy from Hubble
- APOD: 2020 August 16 Á NGC 6814: Grand Design Spiral Galaxy from Hubble
- M106: A Spiral Galaxy with a Strange Center