Fornax galaxy cluster, Chandra X-ray image. The cluster core has a swept-back cometary-shaped tail extending for more than half a million light years.
Fornax galaxy cluster, Chandra X-ray image. The cluster core has a swept-back cometary-shaped tail extending for more than half a million light years. This implies that the hot gas cloud is moving through a larger, but less dense, cloud, creating a headwind. Galaxies whose orbit takes them through the cluster core will eventually be stripped of all their gas. The motions of the core indicate that it lies along a structure composed largely of dark matter, which is collapsing towards a common centre of gravity. Image data collected between 20th May and 1st June 2003, image released 8th September 2004.
Size: 3087px × 2836px
Photo credit: © NASA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: -ray, 2003, 21st, astronomical, astronomy, astrophysical, astrophysics, century, chandra, cloud, cluster, coloured, constellation, false-colour, false-coloured, fornax, galaxy, gas, headwind, intergalactic, physical, physics, pressure, ram, satellite, space, tail, xray
