NASA has released a new image snapped by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope of the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 2835.
This Hubble image shows NGC 2835, a spiral galaxy some 35 million light-years away in the constellation of Hydra. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / R. Chandar / J. Lee / PHANGS-HST Team.
NGC 2835 is an intermediate spiral galaxy located some 35 million light-years away in the southern constellation of Hydra.
Otherwise known as ESO 564-35, LEDA 26259 and UGCA 157, this galaxy is about 65,000 light-years across, just over half the size of our own Milky Way.
NGC 2835 was discovered by the German astronomer Wilhelm Tempel on April 13, 1884.
The galaxy is the foremost member of the NGC 2835 group, a small cluster of galaxies that also includes ESO 497-035 and ESO 565-001.
At its center, NGC 2835 harbors a supermassive black hole with a mass between 3 and 10 million solar masses.
“A previous Hubble image of this galaxy was released in 2020,” the Hubble astronomers said in a statement.
“Do you see anything different between today’s image of NGC 2835 and the previously released versions?”
“Overall, NGC 2835 looks quite similar in all of these images, with spiral arms dotted with young blue stars sweeping around an oval-shaped center, where older stars reside.”
“The new image differs from previously released images because it incorporates new data from Hubble that captures a specific wavelength of red light called H-alpha.”
“The regions that are bright in H-alpha emission can be seen along NGC 2835’s spiral arms, where dozens of bright pink nebulae appear like flowers in bloom.”
“We are interested in H-alpha light because it signals the presence of several different types of nebulae that arise during different stages of a star’s life.”
“Newborn massive stars create nebulae called H II regions that are particularly brilliant sources of H-alpha light, while dying stars can leave behind supernova remnants or planetary nebulae that can also be identified by their H-alpha emission.”
“By using Hubble’s sensitive instruments to survey 19 nearby galaxies, we aim to identify more than 50,000 nebulae.”
“These observations will help to explain how stars affect their birth neighborhoods through intense starlight and winds.”