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
- 4 September 1924
- Named after
- Simona Van Biesbroeck , (discoverer's daughter)
- Alternative designations
- 1924 SM · 1937 CG
- Minor planet category
- main-belt · Eos
- Observation arc
- 80.76 yr (29,498 days)
- Aphelion
- 3.3538 AU
- Perihelion
- 2.6474 AU
- Semi major axis
- 3.0006 AU
- Orbital period sidereal
- 5.20 yr (1,898 days)
- Mean anomaly
- 268.12 °
- Mean motion
- 0° 11 22.56 / day
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- asteroid
- Followed by
- Q121489
- Follows
- Q121472
- Parent body
- Sun
- Minor-planet group
- asteroid belt
- Diameter
- +19.195
- Orbital period
- +1897.453377725812
Show 3 more facts
- P6259
Article
1033 Simona, provisional designation 1924 SM, is a stony Eoan asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 20 kilometers in diameter. The asteroid was discovered by George Van Biesbroeck in 1924, who named it after his daughter Simona.
Discovery