Astronomy Picture of the Day

NASA ^ | 7/8/-08 | Günter Kerschhuber

[sig226]

In the Heart of the Virgo Cluster
Credit & Copyright: Günter Kerschhuber (Gahberg Observatory)

Explanation: The Virgo Cluster of Galaxies is the closest cluster of galaxies to our Milky Way Galaxy. The Virgo Cluster is so close that it spans more than 5 degrees on the sky - about 10 times the angle made by a full Moon. With its heart lying about 70 million light years distant, the Virgo Cluster is the nearest cluster of galaxies, contains over 2,000 galaxies, and has a noticeable gravitational pull on the galaxies of the Local Group of Galaxies surrounding our Milky Way Galaxy. The cluster contains not only galaxies filled with stars but also gas so hot it glows in X-rays. Motions of galaxies in and around clusters indicate that they contain more dark matter than any visible matter we can see. Pictured above, the heart of the Virgo Cluster includes bright Messier galaxies such as Markarian's Eyes on the upper left, M86 just to the upper right of center, M84 on the far right, as well as spiral galaxy NGC 4388 at the bottom right.

[sig226]

[RightWhale]

It’s impresively close and it seems they should have known what it was before a century ago, but they didn’t. Then, they knew of only one galaxy, the Milky Way, which is what ‘galaxy’ means anyway.

[Conan the Librarian]

Before photography, even the best scopes showed these beauties as fuzzy blobs. It wasn’t until Edwin Hubble that someone figured out that they were outside of the Galaxy.

Now, many amateur astronomers have scopes, cameras, and other equipment that the giants of Astronomy would have killed for. We can see what they only dreamed about.

[econjack]

I'll bet if you showed this picture to most people and asked them to comment on it, they would refer to the galaxies as “out of focus stars”. Most people don't have any concept of what a galaxy is or its size. Show them a picture of a spiral galaxy and tell them that one of those little pin points of light is like our entire solar system with the sun and its planets and it just blows them away. I still can't wrap my mind around the concept of infinite space. The universe is still expanding...but expanding into what? Aw man...there goes another night of sleep...

[econjack]

If you want to get an idea of just how good amateur scopes are now, watch this video of the International Space Station:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ChAtseIjgm0&feature=related

[RightWhale]

many amateur astronomers have scopes, cameras, and other equipment that the giants of Astronomy would have killed for.

True and just like computers. It has come so far so quickly and anybody under 30 might never stop to think about it.

[econjack]

Here’s an even better one:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ChAtseIjgm0&feature=related

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

The universe is still expanding...but expanding into what?

That area where the Universe does not yet exist. Of course.

[econjack]

That area where the Universe does not yet exist. Of course.

That didn't help my sleep...

[Conan the Librarian]

Not near as good, but, here it is.

Video I took a few weeks ago in my front yard. I don’t have a tracking mount, so, I had to do it manually.

Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K76oc5wSMf4