In een spiraal gevangen
De afbeelding toont een paar overlappende spiraalstelsels, NGC 3314a en b, die een majestueuze kosmische dans lijken op te voeren. De opname werd gemaakt met ESO's VLT Survey Telescope (VST).
Maar laat je niet door het perspectief misleiden! Beide spiraalstelsels vertonen eigenlijk helemaal geen interactie. De twee sterrenstelsels, die zich op een afstand tussen 117 en 140 miljoen lichtjaar van de aarde in het sterrenbeeld Hydra bevinden, hebben in feite fysiek helemaal geen verbinding. Ze lijken elkaar alleen te overlappen als ze vanuit de positie van de aarde worden bekeken. Deze unieke uitlijning geeft astronomen de mogelijkheid om veel eigenschappen van de sterrenstelsels te meten, zoals hoe stof sterlicht absorbeert. Zo kunnen we inzicht krijgen in hun samenstelling en evolutie.
Er gaat nog een geheim schuil op deze foto als je goed kijkt naar het gebied rechtsonder. Ga je van de spiraalstelsels naar rechts beneden dan kom je halverwege een vage geelachtige vlek tegen: de kenmerk van een ultradiffuus sterrenstelsel (UDG). UDG's zijn objecten zo groot als de Melkweg, maar bevatten 100 tot 1000 keer minder sterren. Deze sterrenstelsels zijn extreem lichtzwak en hebben geen gas waarin sterren kunnen ontstaan. Daardoor zijn ze slechts als een vlek aan de nachtelijke hemel te zien. Deze UDG, UDG 32 genaamd, is een van de zwakste en meest uitgestrekte sterrenstelsels in de Hydra I-cluster.
Deze afbeelding is gemaakt in het kader van een veel groter project, de VST Early-type Galaxy Survey (VEGAS), dat als doel heeft het onderzoeken van zeer zwakke structuren in clusters van sterrenstelsels - grote groepen sterrenstelsels die door de zwaartekracht bij elkaar worden gehouden. De studie, geleid door Enrichetta Iodice van het Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica in Italië, suggereert dat UDG 32 mogelijk is gevormd uit de filamenten afkomstig van NGC 3314a, maar er zijn meer waarnemingen nodig om dit te bevestigen.
Credit:ESO/Iodice et al.
Over de afbeelding
| Id: | potw2145a |
| Taal: | nl-be |
| Type: | Observatie |
| Publicatiedatum: | 8 november 2021 06:00 |
| Grootte: | 1717 x 1725 px |
Over het object
Wallpapers
Coordinates
| Position (RA): | 10 37 8.92 |
| Position (Dec): | -27° 41' 55.30" |
| Field of view: | 6.01 x 6.04 arcminutes |
| Orientation: | North is 0.2° left of vertical |
Kleuren & filters
| Band | Golflengte | Telescoop |
|---|---|---|
| Optisch g | 480 nm | VLT Survey Telescope OmegaCAM |
| Optisch r | 625 nm | VLT Survey Telescope OmegaCAM |
Our use of Cookies
We use cookies that are essential for accessing our websites and using our services. We also use cookies to analyse, measure and improve our websites’ performance, to enable content sharing via social media and to display media content hosted on third-party platforms.
ESO Cookies Policy
The European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO) is the pre-eminent intergovernmental science and technology organisation in astronomy. It carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground-based observing facilities for astronomy.
This Cookies Policy is intended to provide clarity by outlining the cookies used on the ESO public websites, their functions, the options you have for controlling them, and the ways you can contact us for additional details.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small pieces of data stored on your device by websites you visit. They serve various purposes, such as remembering login credentials and preferences and enhance your browsing experience.
Categories of cookies we use
Essential cookies (always active): These cookies are strictly necessary for the proper functioning of our website. Without these cookies, the website cannot operate correctly, and certain services, such as logging in or accessing secure areas, may not be available; because they are essential for the website’s operation, they cannot be disabled.
Functional Cookies: These cookies enhance your browsing experience by enabling additional features and personalization, such as remembering your preferences and settings. While not strictly necessary for the website to function, they improve usability and convenience; these cookies are only placed if you provide your consent.
Analytics cookies: These cookies collect information about how visitors interact with our website, such as which pages are visited most often and how users navigate the site. This data helps us improve website performance, optimize content, and enhance the user experience; these cookies are only placed if you provide your consent. We use the following analytics cookies.
Matomo Cookies:
This website uses Matomo (formerly Piwik), an open source software which enables the statistical analysis of website visits. Matomo uses cookies (text files) which are saved on your computer and which allow us to analyze how you use our website. The website user information generated by the cookies will only be saved on the servers of our IT Department. We use this information to analyze www.eso.org visits and to prepare reports on website activities. These data will not be disclosed to third parties.
On behalf of ESO, Matomo will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of the website, compiling reports on website activity and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage.
Matomo cookies settings:
Additional Third-party cookies on ESO websites: some of our pages display content from external providers, e.g. YouTube.
Such third-party services are outside of ESO control and may, at any time, change their terms of service, use of cookies, etc.
YouTube: Some videos on the ESO website are embedded from ESO’s official YouTube channel. We have enabled YouTube’s privacy-enhanced mode, meaning that no cookies are set unless the user actively clicks on the video to play it. Additionally, in this mode, YouTube does not store any personally identifiable cookie data for embedded video playbacks. For more details, please refer to YouTube’s embedding videos information page.
Cookies can also be classified based on the following elements.
Regarding the domain, there are:
- First-party cookies, set by the website you are currently visiting. They are stored by the same domain that you are browsing and are used to enhance your experience on that site;
- Third-party cookies, set by a domain other than the one you are currently visiting.
As for their duration, cookies can be:
- Browser-session cookies, which are deleted when the user closes the browser;
- Stored cookies, which stay on the user's device for a predetermined period of time.
How to manage cookies
Cookie settings: You can modify your cookie choices for the ESO webpages at any time by clicking on the link Cookie settings at the bottom of any page.
In your browser: If you wish to delete cookies or instruct your browser to delete or block cookies by default, please visit the help pages of your browser:
Please be aware that if you delete or decline cookies, certain functionalities of our website may be not be available and your browsing experience may be affected.
You can set most browsers to prevent any cookies being placed on your device, but you may then have to manually adjust some preferences every time you visit a site/page. And some services and functionalities may not work properly at all (e.g. profile logging-in, shop check out).
Updates to the ESO Cookies Policy
The ESO Cookies Policy may be subject to future updates, which will be made available on this page.
Additional information
For any queries related to cookies, please contact: pdprATesoDOTorg.
As ESO public webpages are managed by our Department of Communication, your questions will be dealt with the support of the said Department.