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Article Images

Antennae galaxies’ fertile marriage

17 October 2006

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This Hubble image of the Antennae galaxies is the sharpest yet of this merging pair of galaxies. As the two galaxies smash together, thousands of millions of stars are born, mostly in groups and clusters of stars. The brightest and most compact of these are called super star clusters.

Credits: NASA, ESA, and B. Whitmore (Space Telescope Science Institute)

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This photo of the Antennae galaxies was taken with one of the NOAO telescopes from the ground.

Credits: NOAO/AURA/NSF, B. Twardy, B. Twardy, and A. Block (NOAO)

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Panning on the Antennae Galaxy, as viewed by the Hubble Space Telescope. The 'stellar fireworks' contain brilliant young clusters of tens of thousands of stars.

Orange blobs to the left and right of center are the two cores of the original galaxies, criss-crossed by dark filaments of dust seen in silhouette. Brilliant blue star clusters, born in the collision, pepper the galaxies. Pinkish glowing hydrogen gas identify star birth regions glowing under the intense energy from newborn stars.

Credits: ESA/Hubble (Martin Kornmesser)

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This ground-based photo shows a wide angle view of the constellation Corvus and part of contellation Hydra. The Antennae galaxies is located in the southern constellation of Corvus.

Credits: NASA, ESA, Z. Levay (STScI) and A. Fujii

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Zooming through the nighttime sky into the constellation Corvus the crow, deeper into the Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys image of the Antennae galaxies. The 'stellar fireworks' contain brilliant young clusters of tens of thousands of stars.

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