Q121577

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

K. Reinmuth

Discovery site

Heidelberg Obs.

Discovery date

22 March 1925

Named after

Asta Nielsen , (Danish actress)

Alternative designations

1925 FA · 1938 SJ 1 , 1949 UQ · 1949 UX, 1951 CQ 1 · 1956 AT, A906 VA · A917 YB

Minor planet category

main-belt · ( outer ) , background

Observation arc

110.65 yr (40,416 days)

Aphelion

3.5142 AU

Perihelion

2.6335 AU

Semi major axis

3.0738 AU

Orbital period sidereal

5.39 yr (1,968 days)

Mean anomaly

203.59 °

Mean motion

Wikidata facts

Instance of

asteroid

Named after

Asta Nielsen

Followed by

1042 Amazone

Follows

Q121566

Parent body

Sun

Minor-planet group

asteroid belt

Diameter

+60.571

Orbital period

+1967.006906951758