Why is this galaxy so active? Nearby spiral galaxy NGC 6946 [ http://www.noao.edu…] is undergoing a tremendous burst of star formation with no obvious cause. In many cases spirals light up when interacting with another galaxy, but NGC 6946 [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] appears relatively isolated in space. Located just 10 million light years [ http://starchild.gs…] away toward the constellation [ http://www.fillingt…] of Cepheus [ http://www.astronom…], this beautiful face-on spiral [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] spans about 20,000 light years and is seen through a field of foreground stars from our Milky Way Galaxy [ http://cassfos02.uc…]. The center of NGC 6946 [ http://www.gemini.e…] is home to a nuclear starburst itself, and picturesque dark dust is seen lacing the disk along with bright blue stars [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…], red emission nebulas [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…], fast moving gas clouds, and unusually frequent supernovas [ http://heasarc.gsfc…]. The 8-meter Gemini North Telescope [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] in Hawaii, USA [ http://www.cia.gov/…], took the above image [ http://www.gemini.e…]. A suggested explanation [ http://adsabs.harva…] for the high star formation rate is the recent accretion of many primordial low-mass neutral hydrogen clouds [ http://www.universe…] from the surrounding region.
Explanation
Why is this galaxy so active? Nearby spiral galaxy NGC 6946 [ http://www.noao.edu…] is undergoing a tremendous burst of star formation with no obvious cause. In many cases spirals light up when interacting with another galaxy, but NGC 6946 [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] appears relatively isolated in space. Located just 10 million light years [ http://starchild.gs…] away toward the constellation [ http://www.fillingt…] of Cepheus [ http://www.astronom…], this beautiful face-on spiral [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] spans about 20,000 light years and is seen through a field of foreground stars from our Milky Way Galaxy [ http://cassfos02.uc…]. The center of NGC 6946 [ http://www.gemini.e…] is home to a nuclear starburst itself, and picturesque dark dust is seen lacing the disk along with bright blue stars [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…], red emission nebulas [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…], fast moving gas clouds, and unusually frequent supernovas [ http://heasarc.gsfc…]. The 8-meter Gemini North Telescope [ http://antwrp.gsfc.…] in Hawaii, USA [ http://www.cia.gov/…], took the above image [ http://www.gemini.e…]. A suggested explanation [ http://adsabs.harva…] for the high star formation rate is the recent accretion of many primordial low-mass neutral hydrogen clouds [ http://www.universe…] from the surrounding region.
