NGC 4038/NGC 4039, Antennae Galaxies, Infrared
The Antennae galaxies, located about 62 million light years from Earth. The Antennae galaxies take their name from the long antenna-like "arms," seen in wide-angle views of the system. These features were produced by tidal forces generated in the collision. The collision, which began more than 100 million years ago and is still occurring, has triggered the formation of millions of stars in clouds of dusts and gas in the galaxies. The most massive of these young stars have already sped through their evolution in a few million years and exploded as supernovas. They are a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus. They are currently going through a phase of starburst. The Spitzer data show infrared light from warm dust clouds that have been heated by newborn stars, with the brightest clouds lying in the overlap region between the two galaxies. Release date August 5, 2010.
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Keywords: 2010, 21st, 4038, 4038/ngc, 4039, antennae, astronomical, astronomy, astrophysical, astrophysics, body, celestial, century, colliding, deep, evolution, galactic, galaxies, galaxy, heavenly, image, infrared, interacting, ngc, object, science, sky, space
