Credit & Copyright: Anglo-Australian Telescope
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Explanation:
Pictured are several galaxies of the Virgo Cluster, the closest
cluster of galaxies to the
Milky Way. The Virgo Cluster spans more than
5 degrees on the sky - about 10 times the angle made by a full
Moon. It contains over 100 galaxies of many
types - including
spirals,
ellipticals, and
irregular galaxies. The Virgo
Cluster is so massive that it is noticeably pulling our Galaxy toward it.
The above picture includes two galaxies that are also
Messier objects: M84
and M86. M84 is the bright elliptical galaxy just above the center of the
photograph, and M86 is the bright elliptical galaxy to its right.
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NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Virgo Cluster
Publications with words: Virgo Cluster
See also: