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Credit & Copyright: Steve Cannistra
Explanation:
Similar
in size to large, bright spiral galaxies in our neighborhood,
IC 342
is a mere 10 million light-years
distant
in the long-necked, northern constellation
Camelopardalis.
A sprawling island universe,
IC 342 would otherwise be a prominent galaxy in our night sky,
but it is hidden from clear view and only
glimpsed through the veil of stars, gas and dust clouds
along the plane of our own Milky Way galaxy.
Even though IC 342's light is dimmed and reddened by intervening
cosmic clouds,
this
sharp telescopic image
traces the galaxy's own obscuring dust, young star clusters, and
glowing star forming regions along spiral arms that wind far from
the galaxy's core.
IC 342 has undergone a recent burst of
star formation
activity and is close enough to have gravitationally influenced
the evolution of the
local group
of galaxies and the Milky Way.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: spiral galaxy
Publications with words: spiral galaxy
See also: