The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured an amazing photo of a spiral galaxy called NGC 2770.
This Hubble image shows NGC 2770, a spiral galaxy located in the constellation of Lynx, 83.8 million light-years away. The color image was made from separate exposures taken in the visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum with Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). It is based on data obtained through four filters. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / A. Filippenko.
NGC 2770 is located approximately 83.8 million light-years away in the constellation of Lynx.
Also known as LEDA 25806 or UGC 4806, this galaxy was discovered by the German-born British astronomer William Herschel on December 7, 1785.
Four supernovae have been observed in the galaxy: SN 1999eh, SN 2007uy, SN 2008D, and SN 2015bh.
“Supernovae form in a few different ways, but always involve a dying star,” the Hubble astronomers said.
“These stars become unbalanced, lose control, and explode violently, briefly shining as brightly as an entire galaxy before slowly fading away.”
One of the four supernovae spotted in NGC 2770, SN 2015bh, is especially interesting.
“This particular supernova initially had its identity called into question,” the researchers said.
“When it was first discovered in 2015, astronomers classified SN 2015bh as a supernova imposter, believing it to be not an exploding star but simply an unpredictable outburst from a massive star in its final phase of life.”
“Thankfully, astronomers eventually discovered the truth and the object was given its correct classification as a Type II supernova, resulting from the death of a star between eight and 50 times the mass of the Sun.”
