Hubble investigates Bullseye Galaxy

LEDA 1313424, nicknamed the Bullseye, is two and a half times the size of our Milky Way and has nine rings — six more than any other known galaxy. The rings are full of stars. High-resolution imagery from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope confirmed eight rings, and data from the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii confirmed a ninth. Hubble and Keck also confirmed which galaxy dove through the Bullseye, creating these rings: the blue dwarf galaxy that sits to its immediate center-left. .

This relatively tiny galaxy traveled like a dart through the core of the Bullseye about 50 million years ago, leaving rings in its wake like ripples in a pond.

Galaxies do collide but it's extremely rare for a galaxy to dive straight through another.

Endlessly fascinating how tiny we are in the universe.

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JimboSaturn · 56-60, M

It's beyond comprehension. I'm sitting here looking at the distance between the wall and myself. Space and distance is making my mind spin.
I wonder what will happen when Andromeda galaxy hits our Milky Way!

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JimboSaturn · 56-60, M

@robingoodfellow Oh ya! I think I've seen that before actually

robingoodfellow · M

@JimboSaturn we're beyond microscopic in the universe. They need to invent a new word to describe extremely small.

DeWayfarer · 61-69, M

@robingoodfellow
Microscopic, visible with eyes.
Submicroscopic, not visible with eyes.
Electroscopic
Nanoscopic, 10^-9 m
Picoscopic, 10^-12 m
Femtoscopic, 10^-15 m

metaldog

That is just so beautiful 💙

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