NGC 7674 (seen just above the center), also known as Markarian 533, is the brightest and largest member of the so-called Hickson 96 compact group of galaxies, consisting of four galaxies. This stunning Hubble image shows a spiral galaxy nearly face-on. The central bar-shaped structure is made up of stars. The shape of NGC 7674, including the long narrow streamers seen to the left of and below the galaxy can be accounted for by tidal interactions with its companions. NGC 7674 has a powerful active nucleus of the kind known as a type 2 Seyfert that is perhaps fed by gas drawn into the center through the interactions with the companions. NGC 7674 falls into the family of luminous infrared galaxies and is featured in Arp's Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies as number 182. It is located in the constellation of Pegasus, the Winged Horse, about 400 million light-years away from Earth.
This image is part of a large collection of 59 images of merging galaxies taken by the Hubble Space Telescope and released on the occasion of its 18th anniversary on 24th April 2008.
Credits
NASA, ESA, the Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration, and A. Evans (University of Virginia, Charlottesville/NRAO/Stony Brook University)| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | NGC 7674, Mrk 533, HCG 96, Arp 182, VV 343a |
| Object Description | Interacting Galaxies |
| R.A. Position | 23h 27m 56.88s |
| Dec. Position | 08° 46' 46.49" |
| Constellation | Pegasus |
| Distance | 350 million light-years (100 million parsecs) |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | HST Proposal: A. Evans (University of Virginia, Charlottesville/NRAO/Stony Brook University) |
| Instrument | HST>ACS/WFC |
| Exposure Dates | June 10, 2006, Exposure Time: 33 minutes |
| Filters | F435W (B) and F814W (I) |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
