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Credit & Copyright: Ken Crawford
(Rancho Del Sol Observatory)
Explanation:
NGC 2685 is
a confirmed polar ring galaxy - a rare type
of galaxy with
stars, gas and dust orbiting in rings perpendicular to the plane of
a flat galactic disk.
The bizarre configuration could be
caused by the chance
capture of
material from another galaxy by a disk galaxy,
with the captured debris strung out
in a rotating ring.
Still,
observed
properties of NGC 2685 suggest that
the rotating ring structure is remarkably old and stable.
In this
fascinating view of the peculiar system also known as
Arp 336
or the Helix galaxy, the strange,
perpendicular rings
are easy to trace as they pass in front of the galactic disk,
along with other disturbed outer structures.
NGC 2685 is about 50,000 light-years across and
40 million light-years away in the constellation
Ursa Major.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: polar ring - galaxies
Publications with words: polar ring - galaxies
See also:
- APOD: 2024 April 15 Á The Cigar Galaxy from Hubble and Webb
- APOD: 2024 March 20 Á The Eyes in Markarians Galaxy Chain
- APOD: 2023 September 13 Á NGC 4632: Galaxy with a Hidden Polar Ring
- APOD: 2023 August 2 Á M82: Galaxy with a Supergalactic Wind
- In the Heart of the Virgo Cluster
- Comet Leonard and the Whale Galaxy
- NGC 3314: When Galaxies Overlap