Scale and compass image for Kiso 5639. Credit: NASA, ESA, and Z. Levay (STScI)
A firestorm of star birth is lighting up one end of galaxy Kiso 5639. The dwarf galaxy is shaped like a flattened pancake, but because it is tilted edge-on, it resembles a skyrocket, with a brilliant blazing head and a long, star-studded tail. Kiso 5639 is a rare, nearby example of elongated galaxies that occur in abundance at larger distances, where we observe the universe during earlier epochs. Astronomers suggest that the frenzied star birth is sparked by intergalactic gas raining on one end of the galaxy as it drifts through space.
“I think Kiso 5639 is a beautiful, up-close example of what must have been common long ago,” said Debra Elmegreen of Vassar College, in Poughkeepsie, NY...
Read More
Recent Comments