NGC5559 - HST - Potw1736a
Like firecrackers lighting up the sky on New Year’s Eve, the majestic spiral arms of NGC 5559 are alight with new stars being born. NGC 5559 is a spiral galaxy, with spiral arms filled with gas and dust sweeping out around the bright galactic bulge. These arms are a rich environment for star formation, dotted with a festive array of colours including the newborn stars glowing blue as a result of their immensely high temperatures.
NGC 5559 was discovered by astronomer William Herschel in 1785 and lies approximately 240 million light-years away in the northern constellation of Boötes (the herdsman)
In 2001, a calcium-rich supernova called 2001co was observed in NGC 5559. Calcium-rich supernovae (Ca-rich SNe) are described as “fast-and-faint”, as they're less luminous than other types of supernovae and also evolve more rapidly, to reveal spectra dominated by strong calcium lines. 2001co occurred within the disc of NGC 5559 near star-forming regions, but Ca-rich SNe are often observed at large distances from the nearest galaxy, raising curious questions about their progenitors.
Credit:
ESA/Hubble & NASA
Coordinates Position (RA): 14 19 12.85 Position (Dec): 24° 47' 55.28" Field of view: 1.35 x 1.22 arcminutes Orientation: North is 4.0° right of vertical
Colours & filters Band Wavelength Telescope
Optical B 438 nm Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 Optical B 438 nm Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 Optical V 606 nm Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 Optical V 606 nm Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 Optical Redshifted H-Alpha+NII 665 nm Hubble Space Telescope WFC3.
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