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
- Johann Palisa
- Discovery date
- 21 May 1879
- Pronunciation
- / ə ˈ r iː t iː /
- Named after
- Arete
- Alternative designations
- A879 KA; 1934 RE 1 ;, 1950 DY
- Minor planet category
- Asteroid belt
- Observation arc
- 136.89 yr (50000 d)
- Aphelion
- 3.1882283 AU (476.95216 Gm ) (Q)
- Perihelion
- 2.2897600 AU (342.54322 Gm) (q)
- Semi major axis
- 2.7389941 AU (409.74769 Gm) (a)
- Eccentricity
- 0.1640143 (e)
- Orbital period sidereal
- 4.53 yr (1655.7 d )
- Mean anomaly
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- asteroid
- Named after
- Arete
- Followed by
- Q146513
- Follows
- 196 Philomela
- Parent body
- Sun
- Minor-planet group
- asteroid belt
- Diameter
- +31.729
- Orbital period
- +1655.867974980001
Show 5 more facts
- P65
Article
197 Arete is an asteroid in the asteroid belt. It has a very bright surface, even so when compared to other rocky S-type asteroid.
It was discovered by J. Palisa on May 21, 1879, and named after Arete, the mother of Nausicaa in Homer's The Odyssey. Every 18 years, this asteroid approaches within 0.04 AU of 4 Vesta. During these encounters, Vesta causes a gravitational perturbation of Arete, allowing the mass of Vesta to be directly determined.