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
- Auguste Charlois
- Discovery date
- 24 September 1891
- Pronunciation
- / m æ ɡ d ə ˈ l iː n ə /
- Named after
- Possibly Mary Magdalene
- Minor planet category
- Main belt
- Observation arc
- 124.56 yr (45496 d)
- Aphelion
- 3.46477 AU (518.322 Gm )
- Perihelion
- 2.92120 AU (437.005 Gm)
- Semi major axis
- 3.19298 AU (477.663 Gm)
- Orbital period sidereal
- 5.71 yr (2084.0 d )
- Mean anomaly
- 158.522 °
- Mean motion
- 0° 10 21.886 / day
- Inclination
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- asteroid
- Followed by
- 319 Leona
- Follows
- 317 Roxane
- Parent body
- Sun
- Minor-planet group
- asteroid belt
- Diameter
- +85.0
- Orbital period
- +2087.706330467207
Show 4 more facts
- P720
Article
318 Magdalena is a main belt asteroid orbiting the Sun. It was discovered by French astronomer Auguste Charlois on 24 September 1891 in Nice. It may be named for Mary Magdalene, who in legend travelled to Southern Gaul and is the patron saint of Provence.
This asteroid is orbiting the Sun at a distance of 3.19 AU with a low eccentricity of 0.085 and an orbital period of 5.71 years. The orbital period is inclined at an angle of 10.7° to the plane of the ecliptic. It is spinning with a rotation period of 42.49 hours.