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Credit & Copyright: Astro 2, UIT,
NASA
Explanation:
This picture of giant spiral galaxy
Messier 101 (M101) was taken by the
Ultraviolet
Imaging Telescope (UIT).
UIT
flew into orbit as part of
the Astro 2 mission
on-board the Space Shuttle Endeavour in March 1995.
The image has been processed
so that the colors (dark purple through white) represent
an increasing intensity of
ultraviolet light.
Pictures of galaxies like this one show mainly
clouds of gas containing newly formed stars many times more massive
than the sun, which glow strongly in the ultraviolet.
In contrast,
visible light pictures of galaxies tend to be dominated by the yellow
and red light of older stars.
Ultraviolet light,
invisible to the human eye, is blocked by
ozone in the atmosphere so ultraviolet pictures of
celestial objects must be taken from space.
M101 is a mere 22 million light-years away in the constellation
Ursa Major.
Its popular moniker is the Pinwheel Galaxy.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
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: M 10 - M 101 - M 1 - spiral galaxy - ultraviolet
Publications with words: M 10 - M 101 - M 1 - spiral galaxy - ultraviolet
See also: