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The Sombrero Galaxy, or M104 in the
Messier catalog, is a spiral galaxy. Its tightly wound spiral arms are
the prime location for stellar births. Sombrero was given its name because
of its remarkable similarity to a wide-brimmed hat. The "brim" of the
hat is composed of dark dust lanes that come together in the shape of
a disk. The bulge-spanning galactic center is filled with billions of
old stars. Many of these stars are grouped together in globular clusters.
The nucleus of the galaxy is only mildly active, meaning that the core
emits very little light. It is thought that a large black hole resides
at the center of the bulge.
(Copyright Anglo-Australian Observatory.)
References:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000228.html
Object |
Distance from Earth |
Wavelength |
Sombrero Galaxy |
50,000,000
light years |
Optical |
