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
- A. Kopff
- Discovery site
- Heidelberg
- Discovery date
- 15 January 1906
- Pronunciation
- / s ɪ ˈ m ɪr ə m ɪ s /
- Named after
- Semiramis
- Alternative designations
Article
584 Semiramis is a minor planet orbiting the Sun within the main asteroid belt. Photometric observations at the Mark Evans Observatory during 2014 gave a rotation period of 5.0689 ± 0.0001 hours. This value is in close agreement with previous studies. The spectrum shows it to be a stony S(IV)-type asteroid.
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