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
- Max Wolf
- Discovery date
- 7 February 1896
- Pronunciation
- / p ə ˈ l eɪ ʃ ə / pə- LAY -shə
- Named after
- Electorate of the Palatinate
- Alternative designations
- 1896 CO
- Minor planet category
- Main belt
- Observation arc
- 116.21 yr (42447 d)
- Aphelion
- 3.6320 AU (543.34 Gm )
- Perihelion
- 1.95333 AU (292.214 Gm)
- Semi major axis
- 2.7927 AU (417.78 Gm)
- Orbital period sidereal
- 4.67 yr (1704.6 d )
- Mean anomaly
- 354.775 °
- Mean motion
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- asteroid
- Named after
- Electoral Palatinate
- Followed by
- 416 Vaticana
- Follows
- Q152742
- Parent body
- Sun
- Minor-planet group
- asteroid belt
- Diameter
- +83.56
- Orbital period
- +1702.705933937266
Show 4 more facts
- P61
- Max Wolf
- P65
Article
415 Palatia is a large main belt asteroid that was discovered by German astronomer Max Wolf on 7 February 1896 in Heidelberg.
10μ radiometric data collected from Kitt Peak in 1975 gave an overly large diameter estimate of 93 km. It has a very low radiometric albedo of 0.026 and the spectrum suggests a metal-rich enstatite composition.