Barred spiral galaxy swirls in the night sky

Eso_potw1204a_1024

eso_potw1204a January 23rd, 2012

Credit: ESO

This image shows the swirling shape of galaxy NGC 2217, in the constellation of Canis Major (The Great Dog). In the central region of the galaxy is a distinctive bar of stars within an oval ring. Further out, a set of tightly wound spiral arms almost form a circular ring around the galaxy. NGC 2217 is therefore classified as a barred spiral galaxy, and its circular appearance indicates that we see it nearly face-on. The outer spiral arms have a bluish colour, indicating the presence of hot, luminous, young stars, born out of clouds of interstellar gas. The central bulge and bar are yellower in appearance, due to the presence of older stars. Dark streaks can also be seen in places against the galaxy’s arms and central bulge, where lanes of cosmic dust block out some of the starlight. The majority of spiral galaxies in the local Universe — including our own Milky Way — are thought to have a bar of some kind, and these structures play an important role in the development of a galaxy. They can, for example, funnel gas towards the centre of the galaxy, helping to feed a central black hole, or to form new stars.

Provider: European Southern Observatory

Image Source: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw1204a/

Curator: European Southern Observatory, Garching bei München, Germany

Image Use Policy: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

Image Details

Image Type
Observation
Object Name
NGC 2217
Subject - Local Universe
Galaxy > Type > Barred
Eso_potw1204a_128
 

Position Details

Position (ICRS)
RA = 6h 21m 40.3s
DEC = -27° 13’ 56.9”
Orientation
North is 0.2° CCW
Field of View
4.4 x 4.8 arcminutes
Constellation
Canis Major

Color Mapping

  Telescope Spectral Band Wavelength
Red ESO-3.6m (EFOSC) Optical (R) 643.1 nm
Green ESO-3.6m (EFOSC) Optical (V) 547.6 nm
Blue ESO-3.6m (EFOSC) Optical (B) 440.0 nm
Spectrum_base
Red
Green
Blue
Eso_potw1204a_1280
×
ID
potw1204a
Subject Category
C.5.1.2  
Subject Name
NGC 2217
Credits
ESO
Release Date
2012-01-23T10:00:00
Lightyears
Redshift
Reference Url
https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw1204a/
Type
Observation
Image Quality
Distance Notes
Facility
ESO 3.6-metre telescope, ESO 3.6-metre telescope, ESO 3.6-metre telescope
Instrument
EFOSC, EFOSC, EFOSC
Color Assignment
Red, Green, Blue
Band
Optical, Optical, Optical
Bandpass
R, V, B
Central Wavelength
643.1, 547.6, 440
Start Time
Integration Time
120, 120, 240
Dataset ID
Notes
Coordinate Frame
ICRS
Equinox
J2000
Reference Value
95.4181182944, -27.232471301
Reference Dimension
1688.0, 1841.0
Reference Pixel
844.0, 920.0
Scale
-4.38067108599e-05, 4.38067108599e-05
Rotation
0.15999999999999992
Coordinate System Projection:
TAN
Quality
Full
FITS Header
Notes
Creator (Curator)
European Southern Observatory
URL
http://www.eso.org/
Name
Email
Telephone
Address
Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2
City
Garching bei München
State/Province
Postal Code
D-85748
Country
Germany
Rights
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Publisher
European Southern Observatory
Publisher ID
eso
Resource ID
potw1204a
Metadata Date
2012-01-12T10:45:48+01:00
Metadata Version
1.1
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Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

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There is no distance meta data in this image.

 

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