Hubble's
hidden galaxy
Date: July 7, 2017
Source: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center
Summary: Although IC 342 is bright, the galaxy sits near the equator of the Milky
Way's disk, thick with glowing cosmic gas, bright stars, and dust, report
investigators.
FULL STORY
IC 342 is a challenging cosmic target. Although it is bright, the galaxy
sits near the equator of the Milky Way's galactic disk, where the sky is thick
with glowing cosmic gas, bright stars, and dark, obscuring dust. In order for
astronomers to see the intricate spiral structure of IC 342, they must gaze
through a large amount of material contained within our own galaxy -- no easy
feat! As a result IC 342 is relatively difficult to spot and image, giving rise
to its intriguing nickname: the 'Hidden Galaxy.'
Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA
IC 342 is a challenging cosmic target. Although it is bright, the galaxy
sits near the equator of the Milky Way's galactic disk, where the sky is thick
with glowing cosmic gas, bright stars, and dark, obscuring dust. In order for
astronomers to see the intricate spiral structure of IC 342, they must gaze
through a large amount of material contained within our own galaxy -- no easy
feat! As a result IC 342 is relatively difficult to spot and image, giving rise
to its intriguing nickname: the "Hidden Galaxy."
Located very close (in astronomical terms) to the Milky Way, this
sweeping spiral galaxy would be among the brightest in the sky were it not for
its dust-obscured location. The galaxy is very active, as indicated by the
range of colors visible in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image,
depicting the very central region of the galaxy. A beautiful mixture of hot,
blue star-forming regions, redder, cooler regions of gas, and dark lanes of
opaque dust can be seen, all swirling together around a bright core. In 2003,
astronomers confirmed this core to be a specific type of central region known
as an HII nucleus -- a name that indicates the presence of ionized hydrogen --
that is likely to be creating many hot new stars.
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