2 galaxies, NGC 3558 in the lower left, and LEDA 83465 in the upper right, are featured in this Hubble Space Telescope image. Separated by a distance of roughly 150,000 light years, they are incredibly close neighbors in stellar terms. Credit: ESA/Hubble & & NASA, M. West
This Hubble Space Telescope Picture of the Week prominently features 2 galaxies: NGC 3558 in the lower left, and LEDA 83465 in the upper. Both galaxies lie roughly 450 million light-years from Earth. The two galaxies are separated from one another by a range of approximately 150,000 light years, which might sound vast, till we consider that our closest galactic next-door neighbor– the Andromeda galaxy– is a whopping 2.5 million light years distant from the Milky Way galaxy. In stellar terms, the two galaxies envisioned here are virtually on top of one another.
These stellar interactions have often led to dramatic results, such as galaxies being torn apart totally. It most likely attained its present form by feasting on smaller galaxies in the cluster– galaxies much like LEDA 83465.
Understanding LINERs
LINERs are a particular type of galactic nucleus or core, and are identified by the chemical finger prints composed into the light that they discharge. As their name suggests, LINERs discharge light which suggests that a lot of the atoms and particles within these galactic cores have actually either been weakly ionized or not ionized at all. Ionization is the procedure by which molecules or atoms lose or gain electrons.
In galaxies, it is driven by a variety of procedures– from shockwaves traveling through galaxies, to radiation from massive stars or from hot gas in accretion discs. When it comes to LINERs, this means that a number of the atoms and particles within the galaxies have lost either a single electron, or have actually maintained all their electrons. The system that drives this weak ionization in LINERs such as NGC 3558 is still debated among astronomers..
The two galaxies are separated from one another by a range of around 150,000 light years, which might sound huge, till we think about that our nearest galactic neighbor– the Andromeda galaxy– is a whopping 2.5 million light years far-off from the Milky Way galaxy. It most likely achieved its present form by feasting on smaller galaxies in the cluster– galaxies much like LEDA 83465.
In galaxies, it is driven by a range of procedures– from shockwaves taking a trip through galaxies, to radiation from massive stars or from hot gas in accretion discs.