Explanation:
Giant elliptical galaxy M60 and spiral galaxy NGC 4647 do look like
an odd couple in
this sharp cosmic portrait
from the Hubble Space Telescope.
But they are found in a region of space where galaxies tend to gather,
on the eastern side of the nearby
Virgo Galaxy
Cluster.
About 54 million light-years distant, bright M60's
simpler egg-like shape is created by its
randomly swarming older stars,
while NGC 4647's young blue stars, gas and dust are organized into
winding arms rotating in a flattened disk.
Spiral NGC 4647 is
estimated to be more distant
than M60, some 63 million light-years away.
Also known
as Arp 116,
the pair of galaxies may be on the
verge of a significant gravitational
encounter, though.
M60 (aka NGC 4649) is about 120,000 light-years across.
The smaller NGC 4647 spans around 90,000 light-years, about the size
of our own Milky Way.
