Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                               2025 December 4
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                           Galaxies in the Furnace
     Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Simone Curzi and the [5]ShaRA Team

   Explanation: An example of violence on a cosmic scale, enormous
   elliptical galaxy NGC 1316 lies about 75 million light-years away
   [6]toward Fornax, the southern constellation of the Furnace.
   [7]Investigating the startling sight, astronomers suspect the giant
   galaxy of colliding with smaller neighbor NGC 1317 seen just right of
   the large galaxy's center, producing far flung [8]star streams in loops
   and shells. Light from their close encounter would [9]have reached
   Earth some 100 million years ago. [10]In the sharp telescopic image,
   the central regions of NGC 1316 and NGC 1317 appear separated by over
   100,000 light-years. [11]Complex dust lanes visible within also
   indicate that NGC 1316 is itself the result of a merger of galaxies in
   the distant past. Found on the outskirts of the [12]Fornax galaxy
   cluster, NGC 1316 is known as Fornax A. One of the visually brightest
   of the Fornax cluster galaxies it is one of the strongest and largest
   celestial radio sources with radio emission [13]extending well beyond
   this one degree wide field-of-view.

                     Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space
     __________________________________________________________________

      [14]< | [15]Archive | [16]Submissions | [17]Index | [18]Search |
   [19]Calendar | [20]RSS | [21]Education | [22]About APOD | [23]Discuss |
                                    [24]>
     __________________________________________________________________

    Authors & editors: [25]Robert Nemiroff ([26]MTU) & [27]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([28]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [29]Specific rights apply.
            [30]NASA Web Privacy, [31]Accessibility, [32]Notices;
                A service of: [33]ASD at [34]NASA / [35]GSFC,
                         [36]NASA Science Activation
                           & [37]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2512/FornaxA_final_apod.jpg
   3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
   4. https://app.astrobin.com/u/MRWSKYLOVER?i=0ym89c#gallery
   5. https://astrotrex.wordpress.com/2024/12/16/shara11-fornax-a-and-a-potential-discovery/
   6. https://earthsky.org/constellations/fornax-the-furnace-galaxy-hubble-ultra-deep-field/
   7. https://science.nasa.gov/asset/hubble/hubble-spies-cosmic-dust-bunnies/
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap080619.html
   9. http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/cosmic_lookback.html
  10. https://app.astrobin.com/u/MRWSKYLOVER?i=0ym89c#gallery
  11. https://science.nasa.gov/asset/hubble/the-dusty-galaxy-ngc-1316/
  12. http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/galgrps/for.html
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap050628.html
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251203.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  18. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  20. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  23. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=251204
  24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251205.html
  25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  26. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  27. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  28. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  30. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  31. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  32. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  33. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  34. https://www.nasa.gov/
  35. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  36. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  37. http://www.mtu.edu/