Tag Archive for 'Merger'

The galaxy AM 1054-325 has been distorted into an S-shape from a normal pancake-like spiral shape by the gravitational pull of a neighboring galaxy, seen in this Hubble image; a consequence of this is that clusters of newborn stars form along a stretched-out tidal tail for thousands of light-years, resembling a string of pearls. Image credit: NASA / ESA / STScI / Jayanne English, University of Manitoba.

Hubble Finds Clusters of Newborn Stars in Tidal Tails of Merging Galaxy Systems

Feb 8, 2024 by News Staff

Using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have observed seven interacting galaxy systems that have long, tadpole-like tidal tails of gas,...

This image from the Gemini South telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, shows NGC 4753, a lenticular galaxy some 60 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo. Image credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / J. Miller, International Gemini Observatory & NSF’s NOIRLab / M. Rodriguez, International Gemini Observatory & NSF’s NOIRLab / M. Zamani, NSF’s NOIRLab.

Gemini South Telescope Focuses on Peculiar Lenticular Galaxy NGC 4753

Feb 6, 2024 by News Staff

NGC 4753’s prominent and complex network of dust lanes that twist around its galactic nucleus define its ‘peculiar’ classification and are the likely...

This Hubble image shows NGC 5427, a spiral galaxy located some 120 million light-years away in the constellation of Virgo. Image credit: NASA / ESA / R. Foley, University of California - Santa Cruz / Gladys Kober, NASA & Catholic University of America.

Hubble Space Telescope Zooms in on NGC 5427

Feb 1, 2024 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have captured a striking photo of NGC 5427, which is part of the interacting galaxy pair Arp 271. This...

This Hubble image shows Arp 295a, a member of the galaxy group Arp 295. Image credit: NASA / ESA / J. Dalcanton, University of Washington / R. Windhorst, Arizona State University / Gladys Kober, NASA & Catholic University of America.

Hubble Spots 250,000-Light-Year-Long Bridge of Stars in Arp 295

Jan 30, 2024 by Enrico de Lazaro

Using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have taken a detailed image of part of a 250,000-light-year-long bridge of stars and gas that stretches...

This Hubble image shows LEDA 60847, a group of interacting galaxies located in the constellation of Draco. Image credit: NASA / ESA / A. Barth, University of California – Irvine / M. Koss, Eureka Scientific Inc. / A. Robinson, Rochester Institute of Technology / Gladys Kober, NASA & Catholic University of America.

Hubble Captures Stunning Galaxy Collision: LEDA 60847

Jan 25, 2024 by Enrico de Lazaro

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has produced a spectacular image of a group of interacting galaxies known as LEDA 60847. This Hubble image shows LEDA...

Two spiral galaxies, NGC 6040 and NGC 6039, are merging together at the right side of this Hubble image. NGC 6039 is seen face-on and is circular in shape. NGC 6040 seems to lie in front of the first one. In the lower-left corner, cut off by the frame, the elliptical galaxy NGC 6041 -- a central member of the galaxy cluster that Arp 122 resides in -- appears as light radiating from a point. The color image was made from separate exposures taken in the visible and infrared regions of the spectrum with Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) and the Dark Energy Camera, which is mounted on NSF’s Víctor M. Blanco 4-m telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. Four filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / J. Dalcanton / Dark Energy Survey / DOE / FNAL / DECam / CTIO / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / L. Shatz.

Beautiful Collision of Two Spiral Galaxies Captured by Hubble: Arp 122

Jan 8, 2024 by Enrico de Lazaro

This cosmic encounter is known as Arp 122 and is seen here as imaged by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. Two spiral galaxies, NGC 6040 and NGC 6039,...

The merger of two neutron stars is among the leading candidate sites for synthesizing the heavier elements on the periodic table through the r-process. Image credit: Matthew Mumpower, Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Ancient Stars were Capable of Producing Elements with Atomic Masses Greater than 260, Scientists Say

Dec 11, 2023 by News Staff

The rapid neutron capture process, or the so-called r-process, occurs in neutron-rich environments such as neutron star mergers or certain types of supernovae....

This image from the Gemini South telescope shows NGC 7727, a spiral galaxy located approximately 69 million light-years away in the constellation of Aquarius. Image credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / T.A. Rector, University of Alaska Anchorage & NSF’s NOIRLab / J. Miller, International Gemini Observatory & NSF’s NOIRLab / M. Rodriguez, International Gemini Observatory & NSF’s NOIRLab / M. Zamani, NSF’s NOIRLab.

Gemini South Telescope Captures Tangled Spiral Arms of NGC 7727

Oct 26, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

A stunning new image from the Gemini South telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, shows NGC 7727 —...

This image from Webb’s NIRCam instrument highlights GRB 230307A’s kilonova and its former home galaxy. Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / STScI / A. Levan, IMAPP, Warw / A. Pagan, STScI.

Neutron Star Merger Observed Creating Tellurium and Other Heavy Elements

Oct 26, 2023 by News Staff

Using an array of ground and space-based telescopes, including the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope, NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, and...

This artist’s impression illustrates the path of FRB 20220610A, from a group of distant galaxies where it originated all the way to Earth, in one of the Milky Way’s spiral arms. Image credit: M. Kornmesser / ESO.

Astronomers Discover Farthest Fast Radio Burst Yet

Oct 20, 2023 by News Staff

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-duration pulses of radio emission originating from extragalactic sources. An international team of astronomers...

This Hubble image shows Arp 107, a pair of merging galaxies in the constellation of Leo Minor. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / J. Dalcanton.

Hubble Captures Stunning Collision of Two Galaxies

Sep 18, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

The Hubble astronomers have released an absolutely beautiful photo taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope of Arp 107, a pair of galaxies in the midst...

NGC 1532 is caught in a lopsided tug of war with its smaller neighbor, NGC 1531. Image credit: CTIO / NOIRLab / DOE / NSF / AURA / R. Colombari / M. Zamani / D. de Martin, NSF’s NOIRLab.

Dark Energy Camera Focuses on Massive Spiral Galaxy and Its Companion

Jul 25, 2023 by News Staff

Astronomers using the 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam) at NSF/NOIRLab Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory have captured a stunning photo of...

SPT-CL J2215-3537 resembles a blue cloud with a hazy golden light at its core. The cluster is set against the blackness of space, which is dotted with white, orange and blue specks of light. A combination of X-ray, ultraviolet, optical, and infrared light, was used to create the image. The blue cloud represents X-ray gas observed by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. The cloud is soft, and uniform in texture. Over time, galaxy clusters often merge or collide. These collisions cause disturbances and sharp features in a cluster’s gas. When a cluster takes on a smooth, calm appearance, as found here in SPT-CL J2215-3537, it indicates that no such collisions have occurred for a very long time. Astronomers call these galaxy clusters ‘relaxed.’ The hazy golden light at the heart of the cloud represents a massive central galaxy with a large amount of star formation. This central galaxy is quite isolated within the blue gas cloud. There are relatively few nearby specks of light near the central galaxy, and none are as bright or as large. No other large galaxies have been found within 600,000 light-years of the central galaxy. This implies that SPT-CL J2215-3537 has not experienced a galaxy merger in the last billion years. Image credit: NASA / CXC / MIT / M. Calzadilla / STScI / HST / N. Wolk.

Chandra Spots ‘Relaxed’ Galaxy Cluster in Distant Universe

Jul 21, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

The dynamically relaxed galaxy cluster SPT-CL J2215-3537 is about 8.4 billion light-years from Earth, making it the farthest galaxy cluster ever spotted...

This Hubble image shows Arp 263, an irregular galaxy located 27.1 million light-years away in the constellation of Leo. The color image of Arp 263 was made from separate exposures taken in the visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum with Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys and Wide Field Camera 3. Two filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / J. Dalcanton / A. Filippenko.

Hubble Space Telescope Spots Triangle-Shaped Galaxy

Jul 17, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have produced a spectacularly detailed image of the irregular galaxy Arp 263. This Hubble image shows...

This Hubble image shows eMACS J1353.7+4329, a lensing galaxy cluster some 8 billion light-years away in the constellation of Canes Venatici. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / H. Ebeling.

Hubble Space Telescope Observes Exceptional Galaxy Cluster

Jul 10, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have captured a remarkable image of the strongly lensing galaxy cluster eMACS J1353.7+4329. This...

This Webb image shows NGC 3256, a spiral galaxy located 131 million light-years away in the constellation of Vela. The galaxy’s core is radiating very brightly. Streaks of dust glow intensely red, in the center and across most of the galaxy. This gas is surrounded by a dark gray halo made of the galaxy’s stars. The halo stretches out into a tidal tail at the upper-left, and another at the bottom. Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / Webb / L. Armus / A. Evans.

Webb Snaps Stunning Image of NGC 3256

Jul 4, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

NASA has released a stunning image snapped by the James Webb Space Telescope of the Milky Way-sized spiral galaxy NGC 3256. This Webb image shows NGC 3256,...

The hot Jupiter exoplanet Halla could once have orbited two stars that interacted via mass transfer. Image credit: Tobias Roetsch / gtgraphics.de.

Close-In Giant Exoplanet Escapes Engulfment by Its Red-Giant Host

Jun 28, 2023 by News Staff

The giant planet 8 Ursae Minoris b (also known as Halla) orbits the core-helium-burning red giant star 8 Ursae Minoris (Baekdu). At a distance of only...

An artist’s impression of a supermassive black hole. Image credit: University of Hawai’i at Mānoa.

Astronomers Detect Supermassive Black Holes in ‘Cosmic Noon’ Galaxy Pairs

May 11, 2023 by News Staff

Astronomers at Newcastle University and Colby College have developed a new technique to determine how likely it is that two galaxies are very close together...

Optical (left) and infrared (right) image of NGC 346 in the Small Magellanic Cloud; the positions of the main ionizing sources of NGC 346, namely SSN 7 and SSN 9, are highlighted by red and green squares, respectively. Image credit: A. Nota, ESA & STScI / NASA / ESA / CSA / O. Jones, UK ATC / G. De Marchi, ESTEC / M. Meixner, USRA / A. Pagan, STScI / N. Habel, USRA / L. Lenkic, USRA / L. Chu, NASA’s Ames Research Center.

Two Massive Touching Stars Will Merge as Black Holes in 18 Billion Years, Astronomers Predict

Apr 27, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

SSN 7 is a so-called contact binary located in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy some 210,000 light-years away in the constellation of Tucana....

$This image, captured by Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), shows Arp 220, a duo of colliding galaxies with merging cores; the brilliant light from the star-formation surrounding these cores creates diffraction spikes. Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / K. Pontoppidan, STScI / A. Pagan, STScI.$

Webb Sees Ultraluminous Galaxy Collision: Arp 220

Apr 18, 2023 by News Staff

Arp 220 is the result of a collision between two spiral galaxies; the enormous object glows brightest in infrared light, making it an ideal target for...

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