Q154557

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 site

Heidelberg Observatory

Discovery date

13 January 1901

Pronunciation

/ ə ˈ l ɛ k t oʊ /

Named after

Ἀληκτώ Ālēktō

Alternative designations

1901 FW, 1949 YE1, 1949 YU, 1968 PB, A907 EF, A916 YC

Minor planet category

Main-belt asteroid

Adjectives

Alektoian / æ l ɪ k ˈ t oʊ . i ə n /

Observation arc

115.24 yr (42091 d)

Aphelion

3.7315 AU (558.22 Gm )

Perihelion

2.4538 AU (367.08 Gm)

Semi major axis

3.0927 AU (462.66 Gm)

Orbital period sidereal

Wikidata facts

Instance of

asteroid

Named after

Alecto

Followed by

466 Tisiphone

Follows

Q503915

Parent body

Sun

Minor-planet group

asteroid belt

Diameter

+73.34

Orbital period

+2004.731248053773