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Credit & Copyright: Steve Mandel
and
Bob Fera
Explanation:
Galaxies of the NGC 7771 Group are featured in
this intriguing skyscape.
Some 200 million light-years distant toward the constellation
Pegasus,
NGC 7771 is the large, edge-on
spiral near center,
about 75,000 light-years across, with two smaller galaxies below it.
Large spiral NGC 7769 is seen face-on to the right.
Galaxies of the NGC 7771 group are interacting, making
repeated close passages that will ultimately result
in galaxy-galaxy mergers on a cosmic timescale.
The interactions can be traced by
distortions
in the shape of the galaxies themselves
and faint streams of stars
created by their mutual gravitational tides.
But a clear view of this galaxy group is difficult to come by as
the deep image also reveals extensive clouds of
foreground dust sweeping across the field
of view.
The dim, dusty galactic cirrus clouds are known as Integrated Flux Nebulae.
The faint IFN reflect starlight from our own Milky Way Galaxy
and lie only a few hundred light-years above the
galactic plane.
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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: group of galaxies
Publications with words: group of galaxies
See also: