Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Ursa Major (UMa)  ·  Contains:  Bode's Galaxy  ·  Cigar Galaxy  ·  HD85161  ·  HD85533  ·  M 81  ·  M 82  ·  NGC 3031  ·  NGC 3034
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M81 & M82, framoro
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M81 & M82

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M81 & M82, framoro
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M81 & M82

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Description

M81 or Bode's galaxy is a circumpolar galaxy located in the constellation Ursa Major about 11.7 million LY away from the Solar System. Observed for the first time by JE Bode (from whom it takes the eponym) in 1774. It is believed to contain approximately 250 billion stars and has a diameter of approximately 70,000 LY. M82 or Cigar Galaxy is also circumpolar, is located in the constellation Ursa Major and is part of the M81 group. Therefore it is also about 11.5 million LY away from the Solar System. It has a diameter of approximately 37,000 LY and is believed to contain approximately 30 billion stars.
M81 is interacting with the "nearby" Cigar galaxy, from which it is about 300,000 LY away and with which it is believed to have come into contact about 250 million years ago. As a consequence of this encounter and the gravitational effects that M82 suffers from M81, particularly active star formation processes have developed, making it an example of a starburst galaxy. The superclusters of young stars that have formed in the galaxy emit impetuous stellar winds, capable of compressing interstellar gas so as to give birth to further stars. They are also responsible for the expulsion of towering plumes of hydrogen, similar to flames, clearly visible above and below the disk.

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Revisions

  • M81 & M82, framoro
    Original
  • M81 & M82, framoro
    B
  • M81 & M82, framoro
    C
  • Final
    M81 & M82, framoro
    D

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M81 & M82, framoro

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Galaxies