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 Observatory
- Discovery date
- 11 October 1901
- Alternative designations
- 1901 GY
- Minor planet category
- main belt Merxia
- Observation arc
- 114.45 yr (41803 d)
- Aphelion
- 3.0921 AU (462.57 Gm )
- Perihelion
- 2.3990 AU (358.89 Gm)
- Semi major axis
- 2.7456 AU (410.74 Gm)
- Orbital period sidereal
- 4.55 yr (1661.7 d )
- Mean anomaly
- 11.0596 °
- Mean motion
- 0° 12 59.94 / day
- Inclination
- 4.7240°
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- asteroid
- Followed by
- 809 Lundia
- Follows
- 807 Ceraskia
- Parent body
- Sun
- Minor-planet group
- asteroid belt
- Diameter
- +30.923
- Orbital period
- +1661.291072889462
- Image
- 808Merxia (Lightcurve Inversion).png
Show 4 more facts
Article
808 Merxia is a minor planet orbiting the Sun. It forms the namesake for the Merxia family of asteroids that share common orbital elements and physical properties. A semimajor axis of 2.75 AU with a moderate orbital eccentricity of 0.126 carries it from 2.40 to 3.09 AU away from the Sun with a period of 4.55 years. Its orbital plane is inclined at an angle of 4.7° relative to the plane of the ecliptic.
The spectrum of this object indicates that it is an S-type asteroid with both low and high calcium forms of pyroxene on the surface, along with less than 20% olivine. The high-calcium form of pyroxene forms 40% or more of the total pyroxene present, indicating a history of igneous rock deposits. This suggests that the asteroid underwent differentiation by melting, creating a surface of basalt rock.