Title
These shape-shifting galaxies
Caption
These shape-shifting galaxies have taken on the form of a giant mask. The icy blue eyes are actually the cores of two merging galaxies, called NGC 2207 and IC 2163, and the mask is their spiral arms. The false-collared image consists of infrared data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope (red) and visible data from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope (blue/green). NGC 2207 and IC 2163 met about 40 million years ago. The two galaxies are tugging at each other, stimulating new stars to form. Eventually, this cosmic ball will come to an end, when the galaxies meld into one. The dancing duo is located 140 million light-years away in the Canis Major constellation.
Date
20th century
Credit line
Photo12/Ann Ronan Picture Library
Reference
ARP15A02_067
License type
Rights managed
Available size
52,7Mb (2,9Mb) / 20,0in x 10,2in / 6000 x 3069 (300dpi)