403 Cyane

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

18 May 1895

Pronunciation

/ ˈ s aɪ ə n iː /

Named after

Cyane

Alternative designations

1895 BX

Minor planet category

Main belt

Adjectives

Cyanean / s aɪ ˈ eɪ n iː ə n / , / s aɪ ə ˈ n iː ə n /

Observation arc

120.89 yr (44155 d)

Aphelion

3.08158 AU (460.998 Gm )

Perihelion

2.53799 AU (379.678 Gm)

Semi major axis

2.80979 AU (420.339 Gm)

Orbital period sidereal

4.71 yr (1720.3 d )

Mean anomaly

Wikidata facts

Instance of

asteroid

Named after

Cyane

Followed by

404 Arsinoë

Follows

402 Chloë

Parent body

Sun

Minor-planet group

asteroid belt

Diameter

+53.574

Orbital period

+1721.908085271816

Image

403Cyane (Lightcurve Inversion).png