This Picture of the Week shows Gum 46, a stunning gas cloud 5500 light-years away, observed in brand new detail with ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). But why does it glow pink? At the heart of Gum 46 there’s a young, hot and blue star called HD311999. Its intense radiation excites atoms in the...
Featured in this new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is a nearly edge-on view of the lenticular galaxy NGC 4753. These galaxies have an elliptical shape and ill-defined spiral arms. This image is the object's sharpest view to date, showcasing Hubble’s incredible resolving power...
This newly-processed infrared image of the Andromeda galaxy uses data from NASA’s now-retired Spitzer Space Telescope to show off the disk of stars and clouds of dust that fill our Milky Way Galaxy’s largest neighbor. The image spans a wide swath of sky nearly 3.8 degrees across, which is close...
This newly-processed image of the Andromeda galaxy uses data from NASA’s now-retired Spitzer Space Telescope to reveal the complex patterns of dust found in our Milky Way galaxy’s nearest neighbor. It shows the glow of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons glowing at a wavelength of 8 microns.
The celestial object showcased in this week's Hubble Picture of the Week is the spiral galaxy UGC 9684, which lies around 240 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Boötes. This image shows an impressive example of several classic galactic features, including a clear bar in the...
This cloudy, ominous structure is CG 4, a cometary globule nicknamed ‘God’s Hand’. CG 4 is one of many cometary globules present within the Milky Way, and how these objects get their distinct form is still a matter of debate among astronomers. This image was captured by the Department of...
This Picture of the Week, taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope, captures the galaxy NGC 4383 evolving in a strange way. Gas is flowing from its core at a staggering rate, hurtling from the galaxy at average velocities over 200 km/s, and up to 300 km/s. This mysterious gas eruption has a unique...
Unlocking the Mysteries of the Historic Tycho Supernova
This image provides a new look at the Tycho supernova remnant, named for Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe who noticed the bright glow of this new "star" in the constellation Cassiopeia more than 450 years ago.