Q119261

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

G. van Biesbroeck

Discovery site

Yerkes Obs.

Discovery date

11 November 1923

Pronunciation

/ ɛ s k j ʊ ˈ l eɪ p i ə /

Named after

Aesculāpius , (Greek/Roman deity)

Alternative designations

A923 YO 11 · 1942 DH, 1977 LP 1 · A899 PE, A908 AE

Minor planet category

main-belt · Themis

Observation arc

108.41 yr (39,595 days)

Aphelion

3.5625 AU

Perihelion

2.7408 AU

Semi major axis

3.1517 AU

Orbital period sidereal

5.60 yr (2,044 days)

Mean anomaly

Wikidata facts

Instance of

asteroid

Named after

Asclepius

Followed by

Q119279

Follows

1026 Ingrid

Parent body

Sun

Minor-planet group

asteroid belt

Diameter

+31.225

Orbital period

+2051.983850238239