Q142013

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

C. H. F. Peters

Discovery site

Litchfield Obs.

Discovery date

15 August 1876

Pronunciation

/ ˈ r ɒ d ə p iː /

Named after

Queen Rhodope , (Greek mythology)

Alternative designations

A876 PB

Minor planet category

main-belt · ( middle ) , background · Eunomia

Observation arc

132.05 yr (48,233 days)

Aphelion

3.2539 AU

Perihelion

2.1165 AU

Semi major axis

2.6852 AU

Orbital period sidereal

4.40 yr (1,607 days)

Mean anomaly

Wikidata facts

Instance of

asteroid

Named after

Rhodope

Followed by

167 Urda

Follows

165 Loreley

Parent body

Sun

Minor-planet group

asteroid belt

Diameter

+52.393

Orbital period

+1608.874966681562

Image

166Rhodope (Lightcurve Inversion).png