Spiral Galaxy UGC 11861 in Cepheus | Hubble Space Telescope

Spiral Galaxy UGC 11861 in Cepheus | Hubble Space Telescope

Resting near the center of the northerly constellation Cepheus, high in the northern sky, is the barred spiral galaxy UGC 11861. It is located 69 million light-years away from Earth. This may seem a vast distance, but it is just right for Hubble to grab this majestic shot of the galaxy’s spiral arms and the short but brightly glowing bar in its center. Among the cloudy gases and the dark wisps of dust, this galaxy is actively forming new stars, visible in the glowing blue patches in its outer arms.

This activity has resulted in three supernova explosions being spotted in and nearby UGC 11861, in 1995, 1997 and 2011. The earlier two were both Type II supernovae, a kind that results from the collapse of a massive star at the end of its life. This Hubble image was made from data collected to study Type II supernovae and their environments.

Image Description: A spiral galaxy with two broad spiral arms wrapping around a large central region. It has a glowing white bar in the very center. Thin strands of dark dust lie over much of the galaxy. The arms have small and large patches of glowing blue light, emitted by new stars. The galaxy is on a dark background. In the foreground, bright stars with four points are dotted around.

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, C. Kilpatrick

Release Date: Aug. 19, 2024

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