'Like Salt Sprinkled on Black Velvet'
The
NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured this view of the dwarf
galaxy UGC 5497, which looks a bit like salt sprinkled on black velvet
in this image.
The object is a compact blue dwarf galaxy that is
infused with newly formed clusters of stars. The bright, blue stars
that arise in these clusters help to give the galaxy an overall bluish
appearance that lasts for several million years until these fast-burning
stars explode as supernovae.
UGC 5497 is considered part of the
M 81 group of galaxies, which is located about 12 million light-years
away in the constellation Ursa Major (The Great Bear). UGC 5497 turned
up in a ground-based telescope survey back in 2008 looking for new dwarf
galaxy candidates associated with Messier 81.
Image Credit: ESA/NASA
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