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.

                               2024 October 9
   [2]A spiral galaxy with blue spiral arms and a bright center is shown.
   The galaxy is surrounded by foreground stars and two smaller galaxies.
   In the galaxy's center are dark brown dust and red emission filaments.
          Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                 M106: A Spiral Galaxy with a Strange Center
                 Image Credit & Copyright: [3]Ali Al Obaidly

   Explanation: What's happening at the center of spiral galaxy M106? A
   swirling disk of stars and gas, [4]M106's appearance is dominated by
   blue spiral arms and red [5]dust lanes near the nucleus, as shown in
   the [6]featured image taken from the [7]Kuwaiti [8]desert. The core of
   [9]M106 glows brightly in [10]radio waves and [11]X-rays where [12]twin
   jets have been found running the length of the galaxy. An unusual
   central glow makes [13]M106 one of the closest examples of the
   [14]Seyfert class of galaxies, where vast amounts of glowing gas are
   thought to be falling into a central massive [15]black hole. [16]M106,
   also designated [17]NGC 4258, is a relatively close 23.5 million light
   years away, spans 60 thousand [18]light years across, and can be
   [19]seen with a small telescope towards the [20]constellation of the
   Hunting Dogs ([21]Canes Venatici).

                       Tomorrow's picture: open space
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    Authors & editors: [33]Robert Nemiroff ([34]MTU) & [35]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([36]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [37]Specific rights apply.
            [38]NASA Web Privacy, [39]Accessibility, [40]Notices;
                A service of: [41]ASD at [42]NASA / [43]GSFC,
                         [44]NASA Science Activation
                           & [45]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2410/M106_Obaidly_3500.jpg
   3. https://www.flickr.com/people/197985535@N06/
   4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messier_106
   5. http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.astro.41.011802.094840
   6. https://www.astrobin.com/w20wbw/0/
   7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuwait
   8. https://youtu.be/D7NEE32wics
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap131003.html
  10. https://science.nasa.gov/ems/05_radiowaves
  11. https://science.nasa.gov/ems/11_xrays/
  12. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1995ApJ...440..181C/abstract
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap140705.html
  14. http://www.seyfertgalaxies.com/
  15. http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/ask_astro/black_holes.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap000311.html
  17. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_General_Catalogue
  18. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/light-year/
  19. https://skywiseunlimited.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/scoper_05.jpg
  20. https://www.iau.org/public/themes/constellations/
  21. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canes_Venatici
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap241008.html
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  26. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  28. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  31. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=241009
  32. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap241010.html
  33. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  34. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  35. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  36. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  37. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  38. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  39. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  40. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  41. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  42. https://www.nasa.gov/
  43. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  44. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  45. http://www.mtu.edu/