Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                               2025 February 6
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                        IC 2574: Coddington's Nebula
                Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Lorand Fenyes

   Explanation: [5]Grand spiral galaxies often seem to get all the glory,
   flaunting their young, bright, blue star clusters in beautiful,
   symmetric [6]spiral arms. But small, irregular galaxies form stars too.
   In fact [7]dwarf galaxy IC 2574 shows clear [8]evidence of intense star
   forming activity in its telltale reddish regions of glowing hydrogen
   gas. Just as in spiral galaxies, the [9]turbulent star-forming regions
   in IC 2574 are churned by [10]stellar winds and supernova explosions
   spewing material into the galaxy's interstellar medium and
   [11]triggering further star formation. A mere 12 million light-years
   distant, IC 2574 is part of the M81 group of galaxies, seen toward the
   northern constellation Ursa Major. Also known as Coddington's Nebula,
   the lovely [12]island universe is about 50,000 light-years across,
   discovered by American astronomer Edwin Coddington in 1898.

                     Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space
     __________________________________________________________________

      [13]< | [14]Archive | [15]Submissions | [16]Index | [17]Search |
   [18]Calendar | [19]RSS | [20]Education | [21]About APOD | [22]Discuss |
                                    [23]>
     __________________________________________________________________

    Authors & editors: [24]Robert Nemiroff ([25]MTU) & [26]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([27]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [28]Specific rights apply.
              [29]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                A service of: [30]ASD at [31]NASA / [32]GSFC,
                         [33]NASA Science Activation
                           & [34]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2502/289_lorand_fenyes_coddington_ic2574_nagy.jpg
   3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
   4. https://fenyeslorand.hu/en/
   5. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210813.html
   6. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap080517.html
   7. https://fenyeslorand.hu/coddington_ic2574/
   8. http://arxiv.org/abs/0808.0193
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240627.html
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250203.html
  11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap111120.html
  12. https://history.aip.org/exhibits/cosmology/ideas/island.htm
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250205.html
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  17. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  22. http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=250206
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250207.html
  24. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  26. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  27. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  29. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  30. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  31. https://www.nasa.gov/
  32. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  33. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  34. http://www.mtu.edu/