1 min read

Hubble Captures a Galactic Dance

Lower left: large spiral galaxy with reddish brown dust lanes extends toward the center of the image. center right: bright elliptical galaxy
NASA, ESA, and H. Ford (Johns Hopkins University); Image Processing: G. Kober (NASA Goddard/Catholic University of America)

This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image finds the large spiral galaxy, NGC 3227, wrapped in a turbulent gravitational dance with its companion, the elliptical galaxy NGC 3226. The twosome – collectively known as Arp 94 – is relatively nearby, between 50 and 60 million light-years away toward the constellation Leo, the Lion. A close look at the area between the two galaxies, reveals faint tidal streams of gas and dust that link the pair in their gravitational dance.

NGC 3227 is a Seyfert galaxy, a type of galaxy with a very active nucleus. Seyfert galaxies hold supermassive black holes at their cores. As matter spirals into the black hole, it releases vast amounts of radiation along the black hole’s axis of rotation. giving the galaxy its active nucleus.

Hubble looked at NGC 3227 and 3226 as part of a program to measure black hole masses by observing the dynamics of gas at the centers of bright cluster galaxies. The color red in this image represents both visible red and near infrared wavelengths of light.

Upper left: black and white smudge of the two galaxies against a starry background. Lower left: swirls of reddish-brown/black dust encircle a bright white core. Reddish-white star forming regions, a few blue stars. Right side: main Hubble image
The upper left, black and white image taken by the Digital Sky Survey outlines the portion of NGC 3227 and 3226 that Hubble imaged. The lower left Hubble image highlights the active core of NGC 3227 and showcases its dark dust lanes and bright star-forming regions.
NASA, ESA, H. Ford (Johns Hopkins University), and DSS; Image Processing: G. Kober (NASA Goddard/Catholic University of America)

To learn more about this interesting twosome, see: Warm Gas Pours 'Cold Water' on Galaxy's Star-Making.

Media Contacts:

Claire Andreoli
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
301-286-1940

Share

Details

Last Updated
Oct 04, 2023
Editor
NASA Hubble Mission Team
Contact
NASA Hubble Mission Team

Related Terms

Explore More

This is a Hubble Space Telescope image of the barred spiral galaxy UGC 12158. The majestic galaxy has a pinwheel shape made up of bright blue stars wound around a yellow-white hub of central stars. The hub has a slash of stars across it, called a bar. The galaxy is tilted face-on to our view from Earth. A slightly s-shaped white line across the top is a Hubble image is of an asteroid streaking across Hubble's view. It looks dashed because the image is a combination of several exposures of the asteroid flying by like a race car.
5 min read

Hubble Goes Hunting for Small Main Belt Asteroids

Article24 hours ago
Artist concept of TESS spacecraft.
2 min read

NASA’s TESS Returns to Science Operations

Article2 days ago
6 min read

NASA’s Near Space Network Enables PACE Climate Mission to ‘Phone Home’

The PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) mission has delivered its first operational data back to researchers, a feat made possible in part by innovative, data-storing technology from NASA’s Near Space Network, which introduced two key enhancements for PACE and other upcoming science missions. As a satellite orbits in space, its systems generate critical data […]

Article2 days ago
Keep Exploring

Discover More Topics From NASA

James Webb Space Telescope

The image is divided horizontally by an undulating line between a cloudscape forming a nebula along the bottom portion and a comparatively clear upper portion. Speckled across both portions is a starfield, showing innumerable stars of many sizes. The smallest of these are small, distant, and faint points of light. The largest of these appear larger, closer, brighter, and more fully resolved with 8-point diffraction spikes. The upper portion of the image is blueish, and has wispy translucent cloud-like streaks rising from the nebula below. The orangish cloudy formation in the bottom half varies in density and ranges from translucent to opaque. The stars vary in color, the majority of which have a blue or orange hue. The cloud-like structure of the nebula contains ridges, peaks, and valleys – an appearance very similar to a mountain range. Three long diffraction spikes from the top right edge of the image suggest the presence of a large star just out of view.

Perseverance Rover

Parker Solar Probe

Juno