Pic of the Day™ (2 Nov) (Must see!)

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ngc4676_hst.jpg


Very large image!

Well i missed yesterday so here is someting rather spectacular, enjoy;)

These two galaxies are pulling each other apart. Known as "The Mice" because they have such long tails, each spiral galaxy has likely already passed through the other and will probably collide again and again until they coalesce. The long tails are created by the relative difference between gravitational pulls on the near and far parts of each galaxy. Scrolling right will show the very long tail of one of the galaxies.

Because the distances are so large, the whole thing takes place in slow motion -- over hundreds of millions of years. NGC 4676 lies about 300 million light-years away toward the constellation of Coma Berenices and are likely members of the Coma Cluster of Galaxies. The above picture was taken with the Hubble Space Telescope's new Advanced Camera for Surveys which is more sensitive and images a larger field than previous Hubble cameras. The camera's increased sensitivity has imaged, serendipitously, galaxies far in the distance scattered about the frame.

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Soldato
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wow........now, think IF, theres a planet with life in one of them two Galaxies, bet they have LOADS of stars to look at...
These two galaxies are pulling each other apart. Known as "The Mice" because they have such long tails, each spiral galaxy has likely already passed through the other and will probably collide again and again until they coalesce.
Tbh if there is life in these galaxies .... there !&*$ed :eek:
 
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Great post!

Makes you feel very small. Have a look at the coloured dots all around - they're galaxies! :eek: I'm just sorry I can't get a feeling for the scale, since it involves so many billions of stars.
 
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Its truly amazing seeing all those other galaxies in the background, each containing millions more stars and billions more planets........the mind boggles! Great piccy, a definate 5 star :)
 
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