2001 Einstein

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

P. Wild

Discovery site

Zimmerwald Obs.

Discovery date

5 March 1973

Named after

Albert Einstein (physicist)

Alternative designations

1973 EB

Minor planet category

main-belt · Hungaria

Observation arc

43.43 yr (15,864 days)

Aphelion

2.1242 AU

Perihelion

1.7430 AU

Semi major axis

1.9336 AU

Orbital period sidereal

2.69 yr (982 days)

Mean anomaly

150.59 °

Mean motion

0° 21 59.76 / day

Wikidata facts

Instance of

asteroid

Named after

Albert Einstein

Followed by

2002 Euler

Follows

Q277625

Parent body

Sun

Diameter

+3.975

Orbital period

+981.8832944787442

Image

002001-asteroid shape model (2001) Einstein.png