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The Hubble Space Telescope takes a stunning shot of the spiral galaxy called NGC 5728 which has a brightly lit ‘celestial eye’ caused by gas and dust swirling around its black hole
- NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope took an image of the galaxy NGC 5728
- NGC 5728 is a Seyfert galaxy, which is “powered by their active nuclei”
- These galaxies have significantly higher brightness in the central region than the remaining galactic light, but NGC 5728 can be observed
- The Hubble used its Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) to take the photo
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope took a remarkable image of a galaxy in deep space that has an active nucleus, similar to a “cosmic eye”.
The galaxy, known as NGC 5728, is 130 million light years from Earth.
It appears to be a spiral galaxy, just like the Milky Way, but it is actually a Seyfert galaxy, a type of galaxy “powered by their active nuclei,” according to a NASA statement.
These galaxies are part of the class of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), which have a significantly higher luminosity in the central region than the remaining galactic light.
“Other types of AGNs, such as quasars, emit so much radiation that it is almost impossible to observe the galaxy that harbors them,” NASA added.
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope took an image of the galaxy NGC 5728, 130 million light years from Earth. NGC 5728 is a Seyfert galaxy, which is “powered by their active nuclei”
However, NGC 5728 is clearly observable and in optical and infrared wavelengths it looks “quite normal,” NASA explained.
The center of the galaxy NGC 5728 emits “large amounts” of light in different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum that the WFC3 camera would be able to see even if it was not in close proximity to the dust surrounding the core of the galaxy.
The Hubble used its Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) to take the picture.
This instrument was responsible for other discoveries in recent memory, such as the discovery of a blue gas jet that resembles a lightsaber.
The Hubble used its Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) to take the picture. The Hubble is set to be replaced by the $ 10 billion James Webb telescope when it launches later this year
The Seyfert galaxies are named after the American astronomer Carl K. Seyfert, who first spotted them in 1944.
There are two types: type 1 Seyfert galaxies which have broad emission lines and type 2 Seyfert galaxies, which have strong emission lines.
In August, Hubble’s WFC3 was responsible for publishing an image of a stellar nursery, AFGL 5180, 5,000 light years from Earth.
The Hubble, which has been in operation for more than 30 years, is expected to be replaced by the $ 10 billion James Webb Telescope when it launches later this year.
It will depart for space from French Guiana on December 18, after a series of delays.
Since its launch in April 1990, Hubble has made more than 1.5 million observations of the universe and more than 18,000 scientific papers have been published based on its data.
It orbits the Earth at a speed of about 17,000 mph (27,300 km / h) in low Earth orbit at about 340 miles above sea level, slightly higher than the International Space Station.
The telescope is named after the famous astronomer Edwin Hubble, born in Missouri in 1889, who discovered that the universe is expanding, and the speed at which it is doing so.
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