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APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy M32
Explanation: Being the largest galaxy around can sometimes make you popular. Pictured is M31's companion galaxy M32 . M31 , the Andromeda galaxy, is the largest galaxy in our Local Group of galaxies - even our tremendous Milky Way Galaxy is smaller. Little M32 is visible in most pictures of M31 - it is the small circular spot north of M31's center. M32 is a dwarf elliptical galaxy . Elliptical galaxies have little or no measurable gas or dust - they are composed completely of stars and typically appear more red than spiral galaxies . Elliptical galaxies do not have disks - they generally have oblong shapes and therefore show elliptical profiles on the sky.
| Date | January 6, 1996 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Credit: 1.1 Meter Hall Telescope, Lowell Observatory, Bill Keel (U. Alabama) |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |