Hubble probes ‘ghost’ galaxy
Astronomers used the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to unmask the dim, star-starved dwarf galaxy Leo IV. This Hubble image demonstrates why astronomers had a tough time spotting this small-fry galaxy: it is practically invisible. The image shows how the handful of stars from the sparse galaxy are virtually indistinguishable from the background.
Residing 500 000 light-years from Earth, Leo IV is one of more than a dozen ultra-faint dwarf galaxies found lurking around our Milky Way galaxy. These galaxies are dominated by dark matter, an invisible substance that makes up the bulk of the Universe’s mass.
Credit:
NASA, ESA, and T. Brown (STScI)
About the Image
| Id: | heic1211a |
| Type: | Observation |
| Release date: | 10 July 2012, 19:00 |
| Related releases: | heic1211 |
| Size: | 6515 x 6615 px |
About the Object
| Name: | Leo IV dwarf galaxy |
| Type: | • Local Universe : Galaxy : Size : Dwarf • Galaxies Images/Videos |
| Distance: | 500000 light years |
Colours & filters
| Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
| Optical V |
606 nm | Hubble Space Telescope ACS |
| Optical i |
814 nm | Hubble Space Telescope ACS |
