476 Hedwig

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

Luigi Carnera

Discovery site

Heidelberg

Discovery date

17 August 1901

Pronunciation

/ ˈ h ɛ d w ɪ ɡ / , German: [ ˈheːtvɪç ]

Alternative designations

1901 GQ

Minor planet category

Main belt

Observation arc

114.66 yr (41880 d)

Aphelion

2.843586228752500 AU (425.39444497321 Gm )

Perihelion

2.458818277348141 AU (367.83397872952 Gm)

Semi major axis

2.651202253050 AU (396.6142118513 Gm)

Orbital period sidereal

4.32 yr (1576.7 d )

Mean anomaly

277.3588495717540 °

Mean motion

Wikidata facts

Instance of

asteroid

Followed by

Q154636

Follows

475 Ocllo

Parent body

Sun

Minor-planet group

asteroid belt

Diameter

+138.493

Orbital period

+1575.495789167971