Mysterious supernovae
Like firecrackers lighting up the sky on New Year’s Eve, the majestic spiral arms of NGC 5559 are alight with new stars being born. NGC 5559 is a spiral galaxy, with spiral arms filled with gas and dust sweeping out around the bright galactic bulge. These arms are a rich environment for star formation, dotted with a festive array of colours including the newborn stars glowing blue as a result of their immensely high temperatures.
NGC 5559 was discovered by astronomer William Herschel in 1785 and lies approximately 240 million light-years away in the northern constellation of Boötes (the herdsman)
In 2001, a calcium-rich supernova called 2001co was observed in NGC 5559. Calcium-rich supernovae (Ca-rich SNe) are described as “fast-and-faint”, as they're less luminous than other types of supernovae and also evolve more rapidly, to reveal spectra dominated by strong calcium lines. 2001co occurred within the disc of NGC 5559 near star-forming regions, but Ca-rich SNe are often observed at large distances from the nearest galaxy, raising curious questions about their progenitors.
Credit:ESA/Hubble & NASA
About the Image
Id: | potw1736a |
Type: | Observation |
Release date: | 4 September 2017, 06:00 |
Size: | 2047 x 1841 px |
About the Object
Name: | NGC 5559 |
Type: | Local Universe : Galaxy : Type : Spiral Early Universe : Galaxy : Type : Spiral |
Distance: | 220 million light years |
Constellation: | Bootes |
Category: | Galaxies |
Wallpapers
Coordinates
Position (RA): | 14 19 12.85 |
Position (Dec): | 24° 47' 55.28" |
Field of view: | 1.35 x 1.22 arcminutes |
Orientation: | North is 4.0° right of vertical |
Colours & filters
Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
---|---|---|
Optical B | 438 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
Optical V | 606 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
Optical B | 438 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
Optical Redshifted H-Alpha+NII | 665 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
Optical V | 606 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |