The spiral galaxy Messier 106 (also known as NGC 4258) is New Images It was photographed by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Galaxy FireworksThis swirling galaxy is located in the constellation Canes Venatici and is about 23 million light-years away from Earth.
By cosmic standards, it is practically one of Earth’s neighbors: in addition to being very close to our spiral galaxy, the Milky Way, it is also one of the most luminous. Two Supernovae It was discovered in this galaxy in 1981 and 2014.
[Related: JWST images show off the swirling arms of 19 spiral galaxies.]
Most spiral galaxies harbor supermassive black holes at their centers. Messier 106 Our solar system is no exception, with a particularly active central black hole that is actively eating up material. As this gas spirals towards the black hole, it heats up and emits powerful radiation. By comparison, the black hole at the center of the Milky Way only occasionally sucks in particles of gas.
Astronomers used the JWST’s Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) to capture this image, which was taken as part of the Messier 106 observing program. Active galactic nucleiThis bright central region of the galaxy is dominated by light emitted from dust and gas falling into the black hole. First images from JWST It is part of the “Stephen’s Quintet” galaxy group that includes the active galaxy NGC 7319.
So New ImagesThe blue areas show the distribution of stars throughout the central region of Messier 106. The orange areas represent warm dust, while the stronger red tones represent cool dust. The blue-green, green, and yellow tones near the center of the image show the different gas distributions throughout the region.
The galaxy also has another notable feature: two “unusual” extra arms that are visible in radio and X-ray wavelengths, but not in visible light, according to the European Space Agency (ESA).
“Unlike the normal arms, these are made up of hot gas rather than stars. Astronomers think these extra arms are due to black hole activity, a feedback effect that has also been seen in other galaxies.” The ESA said in a statement:“These could be caused by outflows of material generated by the violent churning of gas around the black hole, producing a phenomenon similar to waves rushing out of the ocean when they hit rocks near the shore.”
[Related: Elliptical galaxies may just be spiral galaxies with their arms lobbed off.]
Famous in the galaxy Charles Messier, 18th century astronomerhe had never observed it. Assistant: Pierre MechainMessier 106 was never catalogued during Messier’s lifetime; along with six other objects discovered but not recorded by the duo, it was added to the Messier Catalog after his death in the 20th century.
In 2023, Messier 87 became the first AI-sharpened image of a black hole, and the telescope also captured stellar images of the “buff” spiral galaxy Messier 51.
