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Astronomy Picture of the Day
NASA ^
| 5/6/08
| NASA
Posted on 05/06/2008 2:25:12 PM PDT by sig226

Galaxies Collide in NGC 3256
Credit: NASA, ESA, Hubble Heritage (STScI / AURA) - ESA/Hubble Collaboration, & A. Evans (UVa, NRAO, SUNYSB)
Explanation: Galaxies don't normally look like this. NGC 3256 actually shows a current picture of two galaxies that are slowly colliding. Quite possibly, in hundreds of millions of years, only one galaxy will remain. Today, however, NGC 3256 shows intricate filaments of dark dust, unusual tidal tails of stars, and a peculiar center that contains two distinct nuclei. Although it is likely that no stars in the two galaxies will directly collide, the gas, dust, and ambient magnetic fields do interact directly. NGC 3256, part of the vast Hydra-Centaurus supercluster of galaxies, spans over 100 thousand light-years across and is located about 100 million light-years away.
TOPICS: Astronomy Picture of the Day
KEYWORDS: apod
1
posted on
05/06/2008 2:25:12 PM PDT
by
sig226
To: fnord; Number57; KevinDavis; rdb3; MNJohnnie; thoughtomator; RightWhale; proudofthesouth; ...
Just FYI, this is the second one of
these collisions since April. Someone has got to
do something. What about the
children?!
2
posted on
05/06/2008 2:29:17 PM PDT
by
sig226
(Real power is not the ability to destroy an enemy. It is the willingness to do it.)
To: sig226
Amazing picture
I don’t know about them, but I can’t discern two distinct nuclei.
3
posted on
05/06/2008 2:32:04 PM PDT
by
wastedyears
(The US Military is what goes Bump in the night.)
To: sig226
Great picture.
Could you please add me to your ping list for these items?
To: sig226
Good Lord - there are
three of them! This must be George Bush's fault. Where's fatso Kennedy?
5
posted on
05/06/2008 2:51:42 PM PDT
by
sig226
(Real power is not the ability to destroy an enemy. It is the willingness to do it.)
To: wastedyears
I can’t see it, either, and the hi res version isn’t much better. But they have much better toys, and probably some sophisticated spectral analysis which would look rather dull.
6
posted on
05/06/2008 2:55:13 PM PDT
by
sig226
(Real power is not the ability to destroy an enemy. It is the willingness to do it.)
To: sig226
Kinda reminds me
7
posted on
05/06/2008 3:02:31 PM PDT
by
Revolting cat!
(You're gonna cry 96 Tears on my Pillow!)
To: sig226
And some people say they don’t believe in God.
8
posted on
05/06/2008 3:53:01 PM PDT
by
Saundra Duffy
(For victory & freedom!!!)
To: Revolting cat!
If that is the end of the universe, it raises all kinds of questions about creation which might best be answered by a urologists or proctologists, rather than physicists and theologians.
Hmmmm.
9
posted on
05/06/2008 7:06:20 PM PDT
by
sig226
(Real power is not the ability to destroy an enemy. It is the willingness to do it.)
To: sig226
Here's an interesting computer simulation of merging galaxies.
To: sig226
beautiful, simply beautiful.
11
posted on
05/06/2008 9:57:25 PM PDT
by
Shadowstrike
(Be polite, Be professional, but have a plan to kill everyone you meet.)
To: sig226
Looks positively phallic to me.
12
posted on
05/07/2008 8:24:21 PM PDT
by
Ciexyz
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