nrao_NRAO_Gallery018
Credit: B. Saxton, (NRAO/AUI/NSF) from data provided by J. Hibbard
In this composite image of the Whirlpool Galaxy, the Very Large Array has captured the vastness of this colliding pair like no other telescope can. In white is how the galaxies appear to optical telescopes: one giant spiral galaxy with a smaller one hanging off an arm. The VLA sees a much bigger picture. Colored blue are the cast-off gases that were once the outer spiral arms of these galaxies. In red are the areas where new stars are being born.
Provider: National Radio Astronomy Observatory
Image Source: https://public.nrao.edu/gallery/multiwavelength-whirpool/
Curator: NRAO/AUI/NSF, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Image Use Policy: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)
Detailed color mapping information coming soon...
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