Spiral galaxy M101, composite image. M101 is also known as the Pinwheel Galaxy. It lies around 25 million light years from Earth in the constellation

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Spiral galaxy M101, composite image. M101 is also known as the Pinwheel Galaxy. It lies around 25 million light years from Earth in the constellation Ursa Major. The disc of the galaxy is some 170,000 light years across, nearly twice as wide as our own Milky Way. The spiral arms appear blue as they contain hot young stars. The central nucleus is yellow as the stars there are older, and much of the light is obscured by dust. Image data from Meter Subaru Telescope (NAOJ) and the Hubble Space Telescope.

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Size: 4591px × 3805px
Photo credit: © ROBERT GENDLER/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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