Astro-Shed

With the coming of spring, we start to see a parade of galaxies come across our skies which gives us an opportunity to look further back in time and explore the origins and evolution of our own galaxy by observing other galaxies around us. Today’s capture is Messier 82, a unique galaxy in our neighborhood.

M82 was discovered in 1774 by the renowned astronomer Johanne Elert Bode, who also discovered its close neighbor M81, which is less than 1 degree away in the night sky. This significant pair of galaxies, located in the Ursa Major constellation, has fascinated astronomers for centuries due to their striking appearance and intriguing characteristics. M82, often referred to as the Cigar Galaxy because of its elongated shape, exhibits remarkable properties such as high rates of star formation, making it a subject of extensive study and observation. The proximity of M81, a classic spiral galaxy, adds to the interest as researchers explore gravitational interactions and their effects on the formation and evolution of these cosmic structures, showcasing the dynamic nature of our universe.

Notable within this image is the reddish area near the center of the galaxy and appearing as if it is spewing out along the galaxy’s major axis. This is part of a unique outflow of hydrogen gas from the galaxy. Longer exposure images have shown this outflow to continue many thousands of lightyears away from the galaxy.

Halton Arp included this galaxy in his “Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies.” as Arp 337 and within the grouping of “Irregular Galaxies.” Arp held some controversial views on galaxy evolution and is often referred to as the “Modern Day Galileo,” as he called into question the validity of “The Big Bang” theory much in the same way Galileo disputed the Earth as the center of the solar system. I’ve found Arp’s catalogue and his story fascinating even though his theories may eventually be disproven. Arp’s story can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmotCQCxQEI&t=1595s

This image was taken with a Celestron 8″ SCT and ZWO ASI533MC Pro camera through an UV/IR filter and is 60 minutes of 3-minute sub exposures.