Astrophysics Division

Astrophysics
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Irregular Galaxies
Missions
The Universe
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows a densely packed field of stars laid upon a background of dust, gas, and light from more distant celestial objects. There are so many stars in this image’s field of view that it may be a little tricky to discern that you are in fact looking at a […]
Posted February 9, 2024
Astrophysics
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
The Universe
Contrary to what you might think, galaxy collisions do not destroy stars. In fact, the rough-and-tumble dynamics trigger new generations of stars, and presumably accompanying planets. Now NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has homed in on 12 interacting galaxies that have long, tadpole-like tidal tails of gas, dust, and a plethora of stars.
Posted February 8, 2024
Astrophysics
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
Spiral Galaxies
The Universe
This image of the softly luminous spiral galaxy UGC 11105 is from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. It lies about 110 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Hercules. Astronomers have different ways of quantifying how bright celestial objects are. Apparent magnitude is one of those methods.
Posted February 2, 2024
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
Spiral Galaxies
The Universe
UGC 3912 is classified as a spiral galaxy … but you wouldn’t know it from this detailed NASA Hubble Space Telescope image. UGC 3912’s distorted shape is typically indicative of a gravitational encounter with another galaxy. When galaxies interact – either brush up against each other’s gravitational fields or even collide – their stars, dust, […]
Posted February 1, 2024
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
The Universe
The galaxy NGC 5427 shines in this new NASA Hubble Space Telescope image. It’s part of the galaxy pair Arp 271, and its companion NGC 5426 is located below this galaxy and outside of this image’s frame. However, the effects of the pair’s gravitational attraction is visible in the galactic distortion and cosmic bridge of […]
Posted January 31, 2024
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
Seyfert Galaxies
Spiral Galaxies
The Universe
Looking like a baseball lobbed into the depths of the universe, ESO 420-G013 is a face-on spiral galaxy and a Seyfert galaxy. Dark lanes of dust are visible against the background glow of the galaxy’s many stars.  About 10 percent of all the galaxies in the universe are thought to be Seyfert galaxies. They are […]
Posted January 30, 2024
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
Spiral Galaxies
The Universe
A pair of small, interacting galaxies shine in this new NASA Hubble Space Telescope image. The larger of the two galaxies is named NGC 5410 and was discovered in 1787 by British astronomer William Herschel. It spans 80,000 light-years across and has a bright white bar of stars at its center. It is also a […]
Posted January 26, 2024
Astrophysics
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
The Universe
One of the galaxies from a galactic group known as Arp 295 is visible in this new NASA Hubble Space Telescope image, along with part of the faint 250,000-light-year-long bridge of stars and gas that stretches between two of the galaxies. The galaxies have passed close enough together that their mutual gravity created this cosmic […]
Posted January 25, 2024
Astrophysics Division
Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope
Gamma-Ray Bursts
Gravitational Waves
James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)
Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO)
Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory
Stephen Lesage’s phone started vibrating just after halftime on Oct. 9, 2022, while he was watching a soccer game in Atlanta with a friend. When Lesage saw the incoming messages, the match no longer seemed important. There had been a rare cosmic event, and he needed to get to his computer immediately. NASA’s Fermi Gamma-Ray […]
Posted January 24, 2024
Active Galaxies
Astrophysics Division
Galaxies
Goddard Space Flight Center
Hubble Space Telescope
Missions
The Universe
This new NASA Hubble Space Telescope image shows a group of interacting galaxies known as LEDA 60847. LEDA 60847 is classified as an active galactic nuclei, or AGN. An AGN has a supermassive black hole in the galaxy’s central region that is accreting material. The AGN emits radiation across the entire electromagnetic spectrum and shines […]
Posted January 23, 2024
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