A spectacular head-on collision between two galaxies fueled the unusual triangular-shaped star-birthing frenzy, as captured in a new image from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. The interacting galaxy duo is collectively called Arp 143. The pair contains the glittery, distorted, star-forming spiral galaxy NGC 2445 at right, along with its less flashy companion, NGC 2444 at left.
Astronomers suggest that the galaxies passed through each other, igniting the uniquely shaped star-formation firestorm in NGC 2445, where thousands of stars are bursting to life on the right-hand side of the image. This galaxy is awash in starbirth because it is rich in gas, the fuel that makes stars. However, it hasn't yet escaped the gravitational clutches of its partner NGC 2444, shown on the left side of the image. The pair is waging a cosmic tug-of-war, which NGC 2444 appears to be winning. The galaxy has pulled gas from NGC 2445, forming the oddball triangle of newly minted stars.
Credits
Image
NASA, ESA, STScI, Julianne Dalcanton (Center for Computational Astrophysics, Flatiron Inst. / UWashington)
Image Processing
Joseph DePasquale (STScI)
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Arp 143 |
| Object Description | Interacting Galaxies |
| R.A. Position | 07:46:57 |
| Dec. Position | +39:00:51 |
| Constellation | Lynx |
| Distance | About 191 million light-years |
| Dimensions | Image is 3.3 arcmin across (about 180,000 light-years). |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The Hubble image was created from HST data from proposals: (J. Dalcanton) and (C. Britt). |
| Instrument | ACS/WFC and WFC3/UVIS |
| Exposure Dates | 19 Apr and 20 Nov 2020 |
| Filters | ACS/WFC F475W, F606W, F814W; WFC3/UVIS F665N |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the ACS/WFC and WFC3/UVIS instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample narrow wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Blue: F475W Green: F606W Red: F814W Red: F665N |
| Compass Image |  |
| 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. |
