* Astronomy

Members Login
Username 
 
Password 
    Remember Me  
Post Info TOPIC: NGC6907


L

Posts: 131433
Date:
NGC6907
Permalink  
 


Two objects discovered in Capricornus during the 1800s are a pair of colliding galaxies, say astronomers in California and Spain. Furthermore, the collision probably spawned much of the larger galaxy's splendour.
NGC 6907 is a beautiful barred spiral, with one spiral arm brighter than the other. During the twentieth century, astronomers considered another object near it--NGC 6908, located 40 arcseconds, or 1/90 of a degree, away--merely a bright spot in the barred spiral's brighter arm.
In 2004, however, astronomers Jason Surace, David Sanders, and Joseph Mazzarella reported that "NGC 6908 is actually a small spiral galaxy superimposed on the northeast arm of NGC 6907." These astronomers examined near-infrared images, which captured light slightly redder than the human eye can see and thereby enhanced the contrast between the two galaxies. That's because the companion galaxy is redder than the barred spiral's arms, which are blue.
Now Barry Madore and Ian Thompson of the Carnegie Observatories in Pasadena, California; Armando Gil de Paz of Complutense University in Madrid; and Olga Pevunova at the California Institute of Technology have discovered that the companion is an S0 galaxy colliding with the barred spiral.

Read more

ngc6907
Expand (476kb, 1024 x 768)

Position (2000): RA = 20 25 06.90 Dec = -24 48 30.0

__________________
Page 1 of 1  sorted by
Quick Reply

Please log in to post quick replies.



Create your own FREE Forum
Report Abuse
Powered by ActiveBoard