Pan of Galaxy NGC 3256 | James Webb Space Telescope

Pan of Galaxy NGC 3256 | James Webb Space Telescope

This video features the peculiar galaxy NGC 3256 as seen by the NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope. This Milky Way-sized galaxy lies about 120 million light-years away in the constellation Vela, and is a denizen of the Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster.

NGC 3256 may seem peaceful, a swirl of tightly entwined spiral arms set in a hazy cloud of light, but this image shows the aftermath of an ancient cosmic clash. This distorted galaxy is the wreckage of a head-on collision between two equally massive spiral galaxies which astronomers estimate to have met around 500 million years ago. The tumultuous past of NGC 3256 is captured in the long tendrils of bright gas and stars which extend outwards from the main body of the galaxy. These luminous tendrils are called tidal tails, and are studded with young stars which were formed as gas and dust from the two galaxies collided.

Credit: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, L. Armus, N. Bartmann (ESA/Webb)

Duration: 30 seconds

Release Date: July 3, 2023

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