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Posted on 05/07/2025 1:41:56 PM PDT by MtnClimber
Explanation: In the upper left corner, surrounded by blue arms and dotted with red nebulas, is spiral galaxy M81. In the lower right corner, marked by a light central line and surrounded by red glowing gas, is irregular galaxy M82. This stunning vista shows these two mammoth galaxies locked in gravitational combat, as they have been for the past billion years. The gravity from each galaxy dramatically affects the other during each hundred-million-year pass. Last go-round, M82's gravity likely raised density waves rippling around M81, resulting in the richness of M81's spiral arms. But M81 left M82 with violent star forming regions and colliding gas clouds so energetic the galaxy glows in X-rays. This big battle is seen from Earth through the faint glow of an Integrated Flux Nebula, a little studied complex of diffuse gas and dust clouds in our Milky Way Galaxy. In a few billion years, only one galaxy will remain.
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For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.
🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔
They don’t look like that through the eyepiece (of my 4 1/2” scope), but still it’s a thrill to see them.
The Force is strong in this one.
I imaged M81 last night. Despite the brilliant moon, I got pretty good data with 700mm telescope.
The heavens declare the glory of God............
Amen.
Some estimates are that there could be a trillion galaxies in the universe, so it probably won't be missed.
It's like the conversation in Huck Finn between Huck and Jim about Solomon proposing to chop the baby in half. Jim points out that Solomon had a million wives and with 5 million children running around the palace, one baby more or less wouldn't matter to him.
27” scope?
That’s big.
Wow.
700mm focal length. It’s a 103mm objective. F6.8
Thanks - I do not know enough about telescopes.
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