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
- C. J. van Houten , I. van Houten-G. , Tom Gehrels
- Discovery site
- Palomar Obs.
- Discovery date
- 24 September 1960
- Pronunciation
- / ə ˈ nj uː b ɪ s /
- Named after
- Anubis (Egyptian deity)
- Alternative designations
- 6534 P-L · 1938 DJ 2 , 1943 DD · 1968 HQ
- Minor planet category
- main-belt · Koronis
- Observation arc
- 74.27 yr (27,127 days)
- Aphelion
- 3.1736 AU
- Perihelion
- 2.6387 AU
- Semi major axis
- 2.9061 AU
- Orbital period sidereal
- 4.95 yr (1,810 days)
- Mean anomaly
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- asteroid
- Named after
- Anubis
- Followed by
- Q145803
- Follows
- Q145763
- Parent body
- Sun
- Minor-planet group
- asteroid belt
- Diameter
- +10.407
- Orbital period
- +1806.929754906384
- Image
- 001912-asteroid shape model (1912) Anubis.png
Show 3 more facts
- P61
- Tom Gehrels
Article
1912 Anubis (prov. designation: 6534 P-L) is a stony Koronis asteroid from the outer region of the asteroid belt, approximately 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) in diameter. It was named after the Egyptian deity Anubis.
Orbit and classification