2026年1月11日
M104: The Sombrero Galaxy in Infrared
Image Credit: NASA, JPL, Caltech, SSC, R. Kennicutt (Steward Obs.) et al.,
Explanation: This floating ring is the size of a galaxy. In fact, it is a galaxy — or at least part of one: the photogenic Sombrero Galaxy, one of the largest galaxies in the nearby Virgo Cluster of Galaxies. The dark band of dust that obscures the mid-section of the Sombrero Galaxy in visible light actually glows brightly in infrared light. The featured image, digitally sharpened, shows the infrared glow, recently recorded by the orbiting Spitzer Space Telescope, superposed in false-color on an existing image taken by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope in visible light. The Sombrero Galaxy, also known as M104, spans about 50,000 light years and lies 28 million light years away. M104 can be seen with a small telescope in the direction of the constellation Virgo.
Jigsaw Galaxy: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day
Tomorrow’s picture: meteor drift
M104: 红外线下的草帽星系
影像提供: NASA, JPL, Caltech, SSC, R. Kennicutt (Steward Obs.) et al.,
说明: 这个漂浮的环状结构大小堪比一个星系。事实上，它本身就是一个星系，或者至少是其中的一部分：这就是摄影效果极佳的草帽星系，它是邻近室女座星系团中最大型的星系之一。遮蔽草帽星系中段的黑暗尘埃带，在可见光下显得黯淡，但在红外线光中却明亮地发光。这张经过数位锐化处理的主题影像，展示了最近由环绕地球的斯皮策太空望远镜记录到的红外线发光，并以假色叠加在由NASA的哈勃太空望远镜在可见光下拍摄的现有影像上。草帽星系，也被称为M104，横跨约50,000光年，距离地球约2,800万光年。M104可以用小型望远镜往室女座方向观察到。
星系拼图: 每日天文谜题
明日的图片: meteor drift
