A spiral snowflake
Spiral galaxies together with irregular galaxies make up approximately 60% of the galaxies in the local Universe. However, despite their prevalence, each spiral galaxy is unique — like snowflakes, no two are alike. This is demonstrated by the striking face-on spiral galaxy NGC 6814, whose luminous nucleus and spectacular sweeping arms, rippled with an intricate pattern of dark dust, are captured in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image.
NGC 6814 has an extremely bright nucleus, a telltale sign that the galaxy is a Seyfert galaxy. These galaxies have very active centres that can emit strong bursts of radiation. The luminous heart of NGC 6814 is a highly variable source of X-ray radiation, causing scientists to suspect that it hosts a supermassive black hole with a mass about 18 million times that of the Sun.
As NGC 6814 is a very active galaxy, many regions of ionised gas are studded along its spiral arms. In these large clouds of gas, a burst of star formation has recently taken place, forging the brilliant blue stars that are visible scattered throughout the galaxy.
Credit:ESA/Hubble & NASA
Acknowledgement: Judy Schmidt (Geckzilla)
About the Image
Id: | potw1619a |
Type: | Observation |
Release date: | 9 May 2016, 06:00 |
Size: | 3970 x 3970 px |
About the Object
Name: | NGC 6814 |
Type: | Local Universe : Galaxy : Type : Spiral |
Distance: | 75 million light years |
Constellation: | Aquila |
Category: | Galaxies |
Coordinates
Position (RA): | 19 42 40.96 |
Position (Dec): | -10° 19' 30.75" |
Field of view: | 2.62 x 2.62 arcminutes |
Orientation: | North is 50.8° left of vertical |
Colours & filters
Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
---|---|---|
Optical V | 555 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
Infrared I | 814 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
Infrared H | 1.6 μm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |