Striking view of 'Milky Way twin'

Gerald · 06-01-11, 01:21 PM

The image "could almost be a picture postcard of our own Milky Way", said the ESO

Astronomers have released what they say is the best-yet picture of NGC 6744, a spiral galaxy described as a "sibling" of our own Milky Way.

The image was snapped by the European Southern Observatory's MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope in Chile.

The galaxy lies 30 million light-years away, in the constellation Pavo.

While it is almost twice as large as the Milky Way, it exhibits the same sharply-defined spiral arms and stretched central region.

There is even a small companion galaxy, visible at the lower right of the image, which is analogous to our own galactic neighbours the Magellanic Clouds.

Those arms host many star-forming regions; the glow coming from hydrogen gas in these active regions shows up as red in the image.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13600575

Note: 1 June 2011 Last updated at 10:06 GMT

Flaxpants · 06-02-11, 02:15 AM

Great shot.

Is your homeworld located here Vendor?

Gerald · 06-02-11, 02:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flaxpants

Great shot.

Is your homeworld located here Vendor?

One might think so, but currently I have some time off ... so then I spend some time on SubSim, but in terms of jobs so it can be done in principle at any time,

06-01-11, 01:21 PM	#1
Gerald SUBSIM Newsman Join Date: May 2008 Location: Close to sea Posts: 24,254 Downloads: 553 Uploads: 0	Striking view of 'Milky Way twin' The image "could almost be a picture postcard of our own Milky Way", said the ESO Astronomers have released what they say is the best-yet picture of NGC 6744, a spiral galaxy described as a "sibling" of our own Milky Way. The image was snapped by the European Southern Observatory's MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope in Chile. The galaxy lies 30 million light-years away, in the constellation Pavo. While it is almost twice as large as the Milky Way, it exhibits the same sharply-defined spiral arms and stretched central region. There is even a small companion galaxy, visible at the lower right of the image, which is analogous to our own galactic neighbours the Magellanic Clouds. Those arms host many star-forming regions; the glow coming from hydrogen gas in these active regions shows up as red in the image. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13600575 Note: 1 June 2011 Last updated at 10:06 GMT __________________ Nothing in life is to be feard,it is only to be understood. Marie Curie

06-02-11, 02:15 AM	#2
Flaxpants Ace of the Deep Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Koh Samui, Thailand Posts: 1,196 Downloads: 168 Uploads: 0	Great shot. Is your homeworld located here Vendor?