The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has delivered an unrivalled snapshot of the nearby dwarf galaxy IC 4870.
This Hubble image shows the dwarf galaxy IC 4870. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble.
IC 4870, also known as LEDA 63432, ESO 105-11 and IRAS 19327-6555, is a mere 28 million light-years distant toward the southern constellation of Pavo.
This galaxy was discovered by the American astronomer DeLisle Stewart in 1900.
It contains an active galactic nucleus (AGN), an extremely luminous central region so alight with radiation that it can outshine the rest of the galaxy put together.
AGNs emit radiation across the complete electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to gamma-rays, produced by the action of a central supermassive black hole that is devouring material getting too close to it.
IC 4870 is also classified as a Seyfert galaxy, a particular kind of AGN with characteristic emission lines.
The galaxy has been imaged by Hubble for several studies of nearby active galaxies.
By using Hubble to explore the small-scale structures of AGN in nearby galaxies, astronomers can observe the traces of collisions and mergers, central galactic bars, nuclear starbursts, jets or outflows, and other interactions between a galactic nucleus and its surrounding environment.
Images such as this can help scientists understand more about the true nature of the galaxies we see throughout the cosmos.
