Astrophoto Lab
--- your online source for astronomical & satellite images ---

Core of Messier 100 in Super High Res
Home
Welcome!
General Information
Special Galleries
AstroIndex
EarthIndex
Deep Space
Galaxies
Nebulae
Stars, Supernovae
Solar System
Earth from Space
NASA Space Programs
Other Astro Images
Posters
Space Image Gallery
Useful Links
Credits & Useage
Feedback
Signup
Name: M 100, Messier 100
Description: Spiral Galaxy
Position (J2000): RA 12h 22m 54.899s Dec +15° 49' 20.57"
Constellation: Coma Berenices
Distance: 50 million light years
Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA
Release Date: January 16, 2012








Full View:G0913  Closeup:G1330  Galactic Core:G1203  Infrared:  G1042
Click the image to buy a print
+
—————————————————————————————————————————————————

ABOUT THIS IMAGE:

Messier 100 is a perfect example of a grand design spiral galaxy, a type of galaxy with prominent and very well-defined spiral arms. These dusty structures swirl around the galaxy’s nucleus, and are marked by a flurry of star formation activity that dots Messier 100 with bright blue, high-mass stars.

This image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, the most detailed made to date, shows the bright core of the galaxy and the innermost parts of its spiral arms. Messier 100 has an active galactic nucleus — a bright region at the galaxy’s core caused by a supermassive black hole that is actively swallowing material, which radiates brightly as it falls inwards.

The galaxy’s spiral arms also host smaller black holes, including the youngest ever observed in our cosmic neighborhood, the result of a supernova observed in 1979.

Messier 100 is located in the direction of the constellation of Coma Berenices, about 50 million light-years distant.

This image, taken with the high resolution channel of Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys demonstrates the continued evolution of Hubble’s capabilities over two decades in orbit. This image, like all high resolution channel images, has a relatively small field of view: only around 25 by 25 arcseconds.