Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Canes Venatici (CVn)  ·  Contains:  IC 4263  ·  IC 4278  ·  M 51  ·  NGC 5169  ·  NGC 5194  ·  NGC 5195  ·  NGC 5198  ·  Whirlpool galaxy
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M51 The Whirlpool Galaxy, Brent Cooley
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M51 The Whirlpool Galaxy

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
M51 The Whirlpool Galaxy, Brent Cooley
Powered byPixInsight

M51 The Whirlpool Galaxy

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Description

Discovered by Charles Messier in 1773, M51 is located 31 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Canes Venatici. The Whirlpool galaxy’s beautiful face-on view and closeness to Earth allow astronomers to study a classic spiral galaxy’s structure and star-forming processes.

Some astronomers think that the Whirlpool’s arms are particularly prominent because of the effects of a close encounter with NGC 5195, the small, yellowish galaxy seen "colliding" with one of the spiral arms. However, NGC 5195 is passing behind M51 - something that has been taking place for hundreds of millions of years.

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M51 The Whirlpool Galaxy, Brent Cooley

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