Faint Dwarf Galaxy IC 2574 in Ursa Major: Wide-field view

Faint Dwarf Galaxy IC 2574 in Ursa Major: Wide-field view

Grand spiral galaxies often seem to get all the glory, flaunting their young, bright, blue star clusters in beautiful, symmetric spiral arms. However, small, irregular galaxies form stars too. In fact, dwarf galaxy IC 2574 shows clear evidence of intense star forming activity in its telltale reddish regions of glowing hydrogen gas. Just as in spiral galaxies, the turbulent star-forming regions in IC 2574 are churned by stellar winds and supernova explosions spewing material into the galaxy's interstellar medium and triggering further star formation. Also known as Coddington's Nebula, the lovely island universe is about 50,000 light-years across, discovered by American astronomer Edwin Coddington in 1898.

A mere 12 million light-years distant, IC 2574 is part of the M81 group of galaxies, seen toward the northern constellation Ursa Major (The Great Bear). This group is named after the most prominent galaxy in its midst, the big, bright and accordingly well-studied spiral galaxy Messier 81. 

Pink bubbles blown by supernova explosions abound in this faint galaxy. The color of these shells comes from hydrogen gas irradiated by newborn stars. The formation of the stars was triggered by shockwaves from earlier supernova detonations that compressed material together.

Astronomers classify IC 2574 as a dwarf irregular galaxy due to its relatively small size and lack of organization or structure. These galaxies are thought to resemble some of the earliest that formed in the Universe. Dwarf irregular galaxies thus serve as useful "living fossils" for studying the evolution of more complex galaxy types such as our home, the Milky Way, with its central bar and spiral arms. The expanding shells in IC 2574 are of particular interest to astronomers as they reveal how supernova-driven explosions ignite round after round of star formation.  

Credit: Lorand Fenyes

Lorand's website: https://fenyeslorand.hu/en/
Release Date: Feb. 6, 2025

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