Picture of the Day · NASA
NGC 3660 and Burçin's Galaxy
2026-05-26
The upper galaxy might be more photogenic, but the lower galaxy is more unusual. The galaxy up top is NGC 3660, a spiral galaxy similar to our own Milky Way galaxy in that it has several bright blue spiral arms and a central bar of stars, dust, and gas. Captured by chance in the featured deep and colorful image, surprisingly, is SN 2026cff, a supernova found just to the right of the central bar. Farther in the distance is the bottom galaxy, known informally as Burçin’s galaxy, but formally cataloged as LEDA 1000714. The center of this galaxy appears to be an old elliptical galaxy, but it is strangely surrounded by not one but two rings of stars. What created Burçin's galaxy is a mystery and remains a continuing topic of research, but it likely involves the accretion of one or more smaller galaxies.
via NASA APOD
Key facts
- Discovered by
- Alphonse Borrelly
- Discovery date
- 12 September 1871
- Pronunciation
- / ˈ l oʊ m i ə /
- Alternative designations
- A871 RB;1900 DA;, 1900 MC
- Minor planet category
- Main belt
- Adjectives
Article
117 Lomia is a large main-belt asteroid that has a nearly circular orbit; the orbital eccentricity is 0.029. It was discovered by French astronomer Alphonse Borrelly on September 12, 1871, from the Marseilles Observatory. The preliminary orbital elements were published in the following year by German astronomer Friedrich Tietjen. The reason for the name is uncertain, but Lutz D. Schmadel believes it is most likely a misspelling of Lamia, the female demon of Greek mythology (the asteroid 248 Lameia is also named after this figure).
Photometric observations of this asteroid in 1985 gave a light curve with a period of 9.127±0.009 hours and a brightness variation of 0.29±0.03 in magnitude. The curve is symmetrical with a single maxima and minima. This object has a spectrum that matches an XC classification; occupying the transition range between an X-type and a C-type asteroid. It has an estimated cross-section diameter of ~148 km.