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
- Auguste Charlois
- Discovery date
- 18 September 1893
- Pronunciation
- / b ɜːr ˈ ɡ ʌ n d i ə /
- Named after
- Burgundy
- Alternative designations
- 1893 AK
- Minor planet category
- Main belt
- Observation arc
- 122 years
- Aphelion
- 3.002 AU (449.1 million km )
- Perihelion
- 2.556 AU (382.4 million km)
- Semi major axis
- 2.779 AU (415.7 million km)
- Orbital period sidereal
- 4.63 yr (1692 d )
- Mean anomaly
- 294.1 °
- Mean motion
- 0° 12 45 / day
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- asteroid
- Named after
- Kingdom of Burgundy
- Followed by
- 375 Ursula
- Follows
- 373 Melusina
- Parent body
- Sun
- Minor-planet group
- asteroid belt
- Diameter
- +44.67
- Orbital period
- +1692.339705981092
Show 4 more facts
- P65
Article
374 Burgundia is a typical main belt asteroid that was discovered by Auguste Charlois on 18 September 1893 in Nice. It was named for the former French region of Burgundy. It is one of seven of Charlois's discoveries that was expressly named by the Astromomisches Rechen-Institut (Astronomical Calculation Institute). The asteroid came to opposition on 18 April 2026 in Virgo at apparent magnitude 12.
Burgundia was long thought to be a member of the now defunct Ceres asteroid family, but it was found to be an unrelated interloper in that group based on its non-matching composition.