Explanation:
From our vantage point in the
Milky Way Galaxy, we see
NGC 6946
face-on.
The big, beautiful
spiral galaxy
is located just 10 million light-years away, behind a veil of
foreground dust and stars in the high and far-off
constellation of Cepheus.
From the core outward, the galaxy's colors change from the yellowish
light of old stars in the center to young blue star
clusters and reddish star forming regions along the loose, fragmented
spiral arms.
NGC 6946 is also bright in
infrared light and
rich in gas and dust, exhibiting a high star birth and
death rate.
In fact, since the early 20th century at least nine supernovae, the
death explosions
of massive stars, were
discovered in NGC 6946.
Nearly 40,000 light-years across, NGC 6946 is also known as the
Fireworks Galaxy.
This remarkable portrait of NGC 6946
is a composite that includes
image
data from the 8.2 meter Subaru Telescope
on Mauna Kea.
