Wednesday, March 16, 2011

When Galaxies Collide, 280 Million Light Years Away


130 years ago, astronomers discovered Stephan's Quintent--a compact group of galaxies 280 million light years from Earth. NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has captured the X-rays generated by the interstellar collision, as one of the galaxies is sucked through the center of the group at 2 million miles per hour.

The ridge of blue in the center represent the X-rays emitted by the collision, as shock wave heats the galaxy's gasses.


http://www.popsci.com/military-aviation-amp-space/article/2009-07/when-galaxies-collide-280-million-light-years-away

No comments:

Post a Comment