Explanation:
Barred spiral galaxy
NGC 1365 is truly a majestic
island universe some 200,000
light-years across.
Located a mere 60 million light-years away toward the
chemical constellation
Fornax,
NGC 1365 is a dominant member of the well-studied
Fornax
galaxy cluster.
This sharp color image shows intense
star forming regions at the ends of the bar and along the
spiral arms, and details of dust lanes cutting
across the galaxy's bright core.
At the core lies a supermassive black hole.
Astronomers think
NGC 1365's
prominent bar plays a crucial role in the
galaxy's evolution, drawing gas and dust into a
star-forming maelstrom and ultimately feeding material into the
central black hole.
Discovered on October 27, the position of a
bright supernova is indicated in NGC 1365.
Cataloged as
SN2012fr, the
type Ia
supernova is the
explosion of a white dwarf star.
