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
- M. F. Wolf
- Discovery site
- Heidelberg Obs.
- Discovery date
- 9 January 1901
- Pronunciation
- / m ɪ ˈ ɡ aɪər ə / (Megaira), / m ɪ ˈ dʒ ɪər ə / (Megaera)
- Named after
- Megaera , (Greek mythology)
- Alternative designations
- A901 AB · 1929 AH, A912 JB · A912 JC, A916 FD · 1901 FV
- Minor planet category
- main-belt · ( middle ) background
- Observation arc
- 119.07 yr (43,489 d)
- Aphelion
- 3.3764 AU
- Perihelion
- 2.2248 AU
- Semi major axis
- 2.8006 AU
- Orbital period sidereal
- 4.69 yr (1,712 d)
- Mean anomaly
Article
464 Megaira (prov. designation: A901 AB or 1901 FV) is a dark and large background asteroid, approximately 77 kilometers (48 miles) in diameter, located in the central region of the asteroid belt. It was discovered by astronomer Max Wolf at the Heidelberg Observatory in southwest Germany on 9 January 1901. The carbonaceous C-type asteroid (FX) has a rotation period of 12.9 hours. It was named after Megaera from Greek mythology.
Orbit and classification