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Collection:
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NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
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Title:
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Whopper Galaxy Collision
Title
Whopper Galaxy Collision
Title
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Description:
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One of the biggest galaxy collisions ever observed is taking place at the center of this image. The four white blobs in the middle are large galaxies that have begun to tangle and ultimately merge into a single gargantuan galaxy. The whitish cloud around the colliding galaxies contains billions of stars tossed out during the messy encounter. Other galaxies and stars appear in yellow, orange and red hues. Blue shows hot gas that permeates this distant region of tightly packed galaxies.
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope spotted the four-way collision, or merger, in a giant cluster of galaxies, called CL0958 4702, located nearly five billion light-years away. The dots in the picture are a combination of galaxies in the cluster; background galaxies located behind the cluster; and foreground stars in our own Milky Way galaxy.
Infrared data from Spitzer are colored red in this picture, while visible-light data from a telescope known as WIYN are green. Areas where green and red overlap appear orange or yellow. Since most galaxies in the cluster contain old stars that are visible to Spitzer and WIYN, those galaxies appear orange. Blue represents X-ray light captured by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. The colliding galaxies appear white because they are in areas where all the colors overlap.
The WIYN telescope, located near Tucson, Ariz., is owned and operated by the WIYN Consortium, which consists of the University of Wisconsin, Indiana University, Yale University, and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory.
Description
One of the biggest galaxy collisions ever observed is taking place at the center of this image. The four white blobs in the middle are large galaxies that have begun to tangle and ultimately merge into a single gargantuan galaxy. The whitish cloud around the colliding galaxies contains billions of stars tossed out during the messy encounter. Other galaxies and stars appear in yellow, orange and red hues. Blue shows hot gas that permeates this distant region of tightly packed galaxies.
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope spotted the four-way collision, or merger, in a giant cluster of galaxies, called CL0958 4702, located nearly five billion light-years away. The dots in the picture are a combination of galaxies in the cluster; background galaxies located behind the cluster; and foreground stars in our own Milky Way galaxy.
Infrared data from Spitzer are colored red in this picture, while visible-light data from a telescope known as WIYN are green. Areas where green and red overlap appear orange or yellow. Since most galaxies in the cluster contain old stars that are visible to Spitzer and WIYN, those galaxies appear orange. Blue represents X-ray light captured by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. The colliding galaxies appear white because they are in areas where all the colors overlap.
The WIYN telescope, located near Tucson, Ariz., is owned and operated by the WIYN Consortium, which consists of the University of Wisconsin, Indiana University, Yale University, and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory.
Description
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Release Date:
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2007/08/06
Release_Date
2007/08/06
Release Date
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Press Release:
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Press_Release
Press Release
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Release Credit:
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NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Release_Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Release Credit
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Image Credit:
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NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Image_Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Image Credit
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Object name:
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CL 0958 4702
Object_name
CL 0958 4702
Object name
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Object type:
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Interacting Galaxies; Cluster of Galaxies
Object_type
Interacting Galaxies; Cluster of Galaxies
Object type
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Position (J2000):
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*RA: *09h58m19.40s *Dec: *47d02m0.00s
Position_(J2000)
*RA: *09h58m19.40s *Dec: *47d02m0.00s
Position (J2000)
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Distance:
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5 billion light-years
Distance
5 billion light-years
Distance
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Constellation:
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Ursa Major
Constellation
Ursa Major
Constellation
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Wavelength:
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3.6 micron (red)
Wavelength
3.6 micron (red)
Wavelength
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Wavelength:
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X-ray (blue), visible (green)
Wavelength
X-ray (blue), visible (green)
Wavelength
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Image scale:
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5.3 x 5.3 arcmin
Image_scale
5.3 x 5.3 arcmin
Image scale
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Observers:
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K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
R. Finn (Siena College)
A. Vikhlinin (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
Observers
K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
R. Finn (Siena College)
A. Vikhlinin (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
Observers
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Instrument:
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IRAC
Instrument
IRAC
Instrument
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Instrument:
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Chandra/ACIS, WIYN/OPTIC
Instrument
Chandra/ACIS, WIYN/OPTIC
Instrument
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Exposure Date:
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May 2, 2006
Exposure_Date
May 2, 2006
Exposure Date
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Exposure Time:
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1200 sec
Exposure_Time
1200 sec
Exposure Time
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Orientation:
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North is up
Orientation
North is up
Orientation
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note:
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*Image without packaging* Screen-Resolution (450x450): JPEG [ http://ipac.jpl.nas…ssc2007-13a1_small.j pg ] High-Resolution (690x690): JPEG | Mac TIFF | PC TIFF Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
note
*Image without packaging* Screen-Resolution (450x450): JPEG [ http://ipac.jpl.nas…ssc2007-13a1_small.j pg ] High-Resolution (690x690): JPEG | Mac TIFF | PC TIFF Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/K. Rines (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA) note
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facet_what:
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Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Ursa Major
facet_what
Ursa Major
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Infrared Array Camera (IRAC)
facet_what
Infrared Array Camera (IRAC)
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Chandra X-Ray Observatory (CXO)
facet_what
Chandra X-Ray Observatory (CXO)
facet_what
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facet_where:
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Wisconsin
facet_where
Wisconsin
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Milky Way Galaxy
facet_where
Milky Way Galaxy
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Indiana
facet_where
Indiana
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Washington, D.C.
facet_where
Washington, D.C.
facet_where
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facet_when:
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May 2, 2006
facet_when
May 2, 2006
facet_when
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facet_when_year:
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2006
facet_when_year
2006
facet_when_year
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Image #:
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ssc2007-13a
Image_#
ssc2007-13a
Image #
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original url:
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original_url
original url
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UID:
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SPD-SPITZ-ssc2007-13 a
UID
SPD-SPITZ-ssc2007-13 a
UID
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