Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Virgo (Vir)  ·  Contains:  M 60  ·  NGC 4637  ·  NGC 4638  ·  NGC 4647  ·  NGC 4649
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Arp 116 (M60-NGC4647) and M60-UCD1 Close Up, Boris Emchenko
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Arp 116 (M60-NGC4647) and M60-UCD1 Close Up

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Arp 116 (M60-NGC4647) and M60-UCD1 Close Up, Boris Emchenko
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Arp 116 (M60-NGC4647) and M60-UCD1 Close Up

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Description

This image shows Arp 116 which is composed of a giant elliptical galaxy known as Messier 60, and a much smaller spiral galaxy NGC 4647. It was long debated whether they are interacting or just beeing aligned at our line of sight. Recent HST studies confirmed interactions

With M 60 tied an extraordinary satellite galaxy M60-UCD1. It is ultracompact dwarf galaxy (size of 300 ly) with number of records:

- possibly the densest known galaxy with over one hundred stars per cubic light-year.

- it is the smallest and least massive galaxy known to host a central black hole.

- it is one of the most black hole dominated galaxies known (black hole with a mass of 20 million solar masses contributes 15% of the mass of the entire galaxy)

- it is almost the most massive ultracompact dwarf galaxy

M60-UCD1 is believed to be the stripped core of a much more massive galaxy, whose mass was stripped in an encounter with M60 some 10 billion years ago



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    Arp 116 (M60-NGC4647) and M60-UCD1 Close Up, Boris Emchenko
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  • Arp 116 (M60-NGC4647) and M60-UCD1 Close Up, Boris Emchenko
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Description: M60-UCD1 object

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Arp 116 (M60-NGC4647) and M60-UCD1 Close Up, Boris Emchenko

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