Tag Archive for 'Merger'

The main panel of this image shows a wide-field view of NGC 4424 in optical light from Hubble. The image is about 45,000 light-years wide. The inset features a close-up view of NGC 4424 that shows Chandra X-ray data (blue) plus a version of the optical data (red) that has had light from a model of NGC 4424 subtracted from the image to show other faint features. This inset image is about 1,700 light-years across. The Nikhuli star cluster is the elongated red object. Image credit: NASA / CXC / Swinburne University of Technology / Graham et al. / ESA / STScI.

Astronomers Witness ‘Black Hole Delivery System’ in Action

Aug 18, 2022 by Natali Anderson

A rare intermediate-mass black hole may have been delivered to the barred spiral galaxy NGC 4424 by another, smaller galaxy, according to an analysis of...

This image of NGC 7727 was captured by the FORS2 instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope. Image credit: ESO.

VLT Sees Spectacular Cosmic Collision: NGC 7727

Aug 16, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the FOcal Reducer and low dispersion Spectrograph 2 (FORS2) instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) have taken a picture of...

This image from the Gemini North telescope shows a pair of interacting spiral galaxies: NGC 4568 (bottom) and NGC 4567 (top). Image credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / T.A. Rector, University of Alaska Anchorage & NSF’s NOIRLab / J. Miller, Gemini Observatory & NSF’s NOIRLab / M. Zamani, NSF’s NOIRLab / D. de Martin, NSF’s NOIRLab.

Astronomers Capture Ongoing Collision of Two Spiral Galaxies

Aug 9, 2022 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Gemini North telescope, one of the twin telescopes of the International Gemini Observatory, have captured a stunning image of a pair...

This artist’s conception shows the merger between a neutron star and another star (seen as a disk, lower left) which caused an explosion resulting in SGRB 211106A (white jet, middle), and left behind what astronomers now know to be one of the most luminous afterglows on record (semi-spherical shock wave mid-right); while dust in the host galaxy obscured most of the visible light (shown as colors), millimeter light from the event (depicted in green) was able to escape and reach ALMA. Image credit: ALMA / ESO / NAOJ / NRAO / M. Weiss, NRAO, AUI & NSF.

ALMA Looks at Neutron Star Merger in Millimeter Light

Aug 3, 2022 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have for the first time detected the millimeter afterglow of a short-duration...

This artist’s impression illustrates the merger of two neutron stars, which produces the remarkably brief yet intensely powerful event known as a short gamma-ray burst. Image credit: NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / J. da Silva / Spaceengine.

Castaway Gamma-Ray Bursts Occur in Extremely Distant Galaxies, Astronomers Say

Jul 28, 2022 by News Staff

About 30% of short gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs), which form during the collisions of neutron stars, lack a coincident host galaxy, raising questions about...

An artist’s impression of the HR 6819 triple system. Image credit: L. Calçada / ESO.

Astronomers Discover Massive, Compact System of Three Stars

Jul 19, 2022 by News Staff

TIC 470710327, a massive, compact hierarchical triple-star system recently identified by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), was originally...

This Hubble image shows LEDA 17532, a multi-armed galaxy merger some 520 million light-years away in the constellation of Orion. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / W. Keel.

Hubble Observes Multi-Armed Galaxy Merger

Jul 4, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

The Hubble team has released an incredibly beautiful image of a peculiar galaxy called LEDA 17532. This Hubble image shows LEDA 17532, a multi-armed galaxy...

In this composite image of Abell 2146, Chandra X-ray data (purple) shows hot gas, and Subaru Telescope optical data shows galaxies (red and white). Image credit: NASA / CXC / University of Nottingham / Russell et al. / NAOJ / Subaru Telescope.

Chandra Spots 1.6-Million-Light-Year-Long Shock Wave in Abell 2146

Jun 9, 2022 by News Staff

Abell 2146 is a pair of colliding galaxy clusters located approximately 2.8 billion light-years away in the constellation of Draco. In this composite image...

This Hubble image shows Hickson Compact Group 31, a group of four galaxies located some 166 million light-years away in the constellation of Eridanus. The bright, distorted object is actually two colliding dwarf galaxies. The bluish star clusters have formed in the streamers of debris pulled from the galaxies and at the site of their head-on collision. The cigar-shaped object to the right is another member of the group. A bridge of star clusters connects the trio. A longer rope of bright star clusters points to the fourth member of the group. The bright object in the center is a foreground star. Image credit: NASA / ESA / J. Charlton, Pennsylvania State University / G. Kober, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center / Catholic University of America.

Hubble Images Four Merging Dwarf Galaxies

May 18, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

NASA has released a stunning new image snapped by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope of a quartet of galaxies called Hickson Compact Group 31. This Hubble...

An artist’s impression of the quadruple system HD 74438. Image credit: University of Canterbury.

Type Ia Supernovae Can Occur in Quadruple Systems, Astronomers Suggest

May 16, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

Binary systems have received much attention as possible progenitors of Type Ia supernovae, but long-term gravitational effects in tight triple or quadruple...

In this simulation of a supermassive black hole merger, the blue-shifted black hole closest to the viewer amplifies the red-shifted black hole in the back through gravitational lensing. Davelaar & Haiman discovered a distinct dip in brightness when the closest black hole passed in front of the shadow of its counterpart, an observation that could be used to measure the size of both black holes and test alternative theories of gravity. Image credit: Jordy Davelaar.

Scientists Develop Method to Image Shadows Cast by Black Hole Binaries

May 10, 2022 by News Staff

In April 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration released stunning images of M87*, a 6.5-billion-solar-mass black hole in the center of the...

This image from the Dark Energy Camera shows the interacting galaxy pair NGC 1512 and NGC 1510. Image credit: Dark Energy Survey / DOE / FNAL / DECam / CTIO / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / T.A. Rector, University of Alaska Anchorage & NSF’s NOIRLab / J. Miller, Gemini Observatory & NSF’s NOIRLab / M. Zamani & D. de Martin, NSF’s NOIRLab.

DECam Spots Bizarre Pair of Interacting Galaxies

May 4, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

Using the Dark Energy Camera (DECam), a state-of-the-art wide-field imager on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-m Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory,...

This Hubble image shows the VV 689 system. The color image is composed of infrared, optical and ultraviolet observations from Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), the Dark Energy Camera (DECam) on the Victor M. Blanco 4-m Telescope, and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Nine 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 / W. Keel / Judy Schmidt, www.geckzilla.com.

Hubble Witnesses Stunning Galaxy Collision: VV 689

Apr 18, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

A beautiful new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope captures an ongoing collision between two massive galaxies. This Hubble image shows the...

Chandra Detects ‘Sonic Boom’ from Powerful Kilonova

Mar 3, 2022 by News Staff

The binary neutron-star merger GW170817 was discovered in August 2017. Many telescopes saw different kinds of light after the discovery, but only NASA’s...

An artist’s impression of a dwarf galaxy. Image credit: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Astronomers Use Distributed Supercomputer to Reconstruct Ancient Dwarf Galaxy

Feb 18, 2022 by News Staff

Using the 1.5 PetaFLOPS MilkyWay@home distributed supercomputer, astronomers have calculated the original mass and size of a dwarf galaxy that was shredded...

This image shows the Milky Way Galaxy as seen by ESA’s Gaia spacecraft; the squares represent the location of globular clusters, the triangles the location of satellite galaxies, and the small dots are stellar streams; the dots and squares in purple are objects brought into the Milky Way by the Pontus merging galaxy. Image credit: ESA / Gaia / DPAC / CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO.

Gaia Discovers New Fossil Galaxy Hidden in Milky Way’s Halo

Feb 17, 2022 by News Staff

Using data from ESA’s Gaia spacecraft, astronomers have looked for the remains of ancient dwarf galaxies in the Milky Way’s halo, which surrounds the...

This artist’s impression shows the merger of two white dwarfs. Image credit: Nicole Reindl, University of Potsdam.

Astronomers Discover New Type of Subdwarf Star

Feb 14, 2022 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Large Binocular Telescope have discovered two unusual hot subdwarf stars: PG 1654+322 and PG 1528+025. While normal stars have surfaces...

This composite image shows the distant galaxy merger IC 2431. The image is composed of infrared, optical and ultraviolet observations from Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), the Dark Energy Camera (DECam) on the Victor M. Blanco 4-m Telescope, and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Nine 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 / W. Keel, Dark Energy Survey / DOE / FNAL / DECam / CTIO / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / SDSS / Judy Schmidt, www.geckzilla.com.

Hubble Observes Triple Galaxy Merger: IC 2431

Feb 14, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

The Hubble team has released an incredibly beautiful shot of IC 2431, a distant trio of merging galaxies located in the constellation of Cancer. This composite...

This image, taken with the MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope, shows two bright galactic nuclei, each housing a supermassive black hole, in NGC 7727. Image credit: ESO / Voggel et al.

Astronomers Find Two Supermassive Black Holes in NGC 7727

Dec 1, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

The supermassive black hole pair, located in the peculiar galaxy NGC 7727, is about 89 million light-years away from Earth, making it the record holder...

This image, taken with ESO’s VLT Survey Telescope, shows NGC 7727, a peculiar galaxy some 69 million light-years away in the constellation of Aquarius. Image credit: ESO / VST-ATLAS Team / Durham University / CASU / WFAU.

VST Sees Messy Result of Cosmic Collision

Nov 30, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

Using ESO’s VLT Survey Telescope (VST), astronomers have captured this image of the peculiar galaxy NGC 7727. This image, taken with ESO’s VLT Survey...

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