Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Ursa Major (UMa)  ·  Contains:  Bode's galaxy  ·  Bode's nebulae  ·  Cigar galaxy  ·  M 81  ·  M 82  ·  NGC 3031  ·  NGC 3034  ·  PGC 2724146  ·  PGC 2726822  ·  PGC 2728721  ·  PGC 2730379  ·  PGC 2730409  ·  PGC 2730709  ·  PGC 2731294  ·  PGC 2732102  ·  PGC 2732338  ·  PGC 2732720  ·  PGC 2732797  ·  PGC 2733060  ·  PGC 28505  ·  PGC 28529  ·  PGC 28757  ·  PGC 28848  ·  PGC 3086325  ·  PGC 3097961
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M81 and M82, Glenn Diekmann
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M81 and M82

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
M81 and M82, Glenn Diekmann
Powered byPixInsight

M81 and M82

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Description

The M 81 and M 82 galaxies are located about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. Their circumpolar location makes them visible mainly to northern observers. M 81 has the common name Bode's Galaxy due to its discovery in 1774 by Johann Elert Bode. It was added to Charles Messier's catalog in 1779. At its core is a 70 million-solar-mass black hole.

M 82, also called the Cigar Galaxy, is a prototypical starburst galaxy. The intense, star-forming activity is thought to have been triggered by a close interaction with M 81. Its distinctive photographic appearance is due to the jets of ionized hydrogen gas shooting out from its center.

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Revisions

  • M81 and M82, Glenn Diekmann
    Original
  • M81 and M82, Glenn Diekmann
    B
  • Final
    M81 and M82, Glenn Diekmann
    C

B

Description: A bit brighter.

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C

Description: Re-stretched the image for better presentation of nebulosity.

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M81 and M82, Glenn Diekmann