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NASA unveils gorgeous new pics of the Andromeda Galaxy
NASA's Swift satellite has beamed back a new image of Andromeda, our neighboring galaxy, in one of the highest-resolution views of a spiral galaxy ever attained in the ultraviolet, the agency announced this week (click on the image below for the full version).
Known formally as M31 in the constellation Andromeda, the galaxy is the largest and closest spiral galaxy to our own. The image is really a mosaic of 330 individual images taken by Swift's Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope. The image shows a region 200,000 light-years wide and 100,000 light-years high (100 arcminutes by 50 arcminutes).
See if you can spot the following:
♦The insectoid aliens from District 9, which director Neill Blomkamp has said come from the galaxy, though it's not mentioned in the movie
♦The evil Kelvans from the original Star Trek series episode "By Any Other Name"
♦The evil aliens from John Carpenter's 1988 movie They Live
♦The starship captained by Dylan Hunt as it patrols the galaxy
♦Blake's 7' Liberator as it battles invaders from the galaxy
♦blancmanges from the planet Skyron
By JB_Gibson at 2:09 PM ON 10/16/09
Beautiful. Just beautiful.
By Just Me at 2:17 PM ON 10/16/09
"No - no words. No words to describe it. Poetry! They should've sent a poet. So beautiful. So beautiful... I had no idea."
By kryche at 2:18 PM ON 10/16/09
Sweet, thanks for the new desktop wall paper. Was getting tired of my Chiana wall paper.
By KobashiMaru at 2:33 PM ON 10/16/09
If you want to really be amazed, check out NASA's Astronomy Pic of the Day: http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
Blessings!
By closettrekkie at 3:54 PM ON 10/16/09
were are all the stargates ? failing that jump gates at least yer man Dylan Hunt is nowhere to be seen
By keener at 4:56 PM ON 10/16/09
when you look at that picture how could you not believe that there's life out there??? That is quite a waste of space if there isn't at least a spec of bacteria in that galaxy!
By Forge at 5:37 PM ON 10/16/09
The spiral that reaches out
to touch all there is,
is part of the oneness that includes the eyes
that look through instruments large
and small
at the spiral that reaches out
to touch all there is
By nilus at 5:44 PM ON 10/16/09
My God, Its full of Stars.
By Quliuq at 7:11 PM ON 10/16/09
One of the Sepreme Being's greatest creation's.... Just wonderful and awesome...
By Lim, Rick at 8:19 PM ON 10/16/09
O Andromeda!
To gaze on that grand galaxy
fills me with a pure ataraxy.
It thrills me to see
such absolutely
exquisite, elegant eutaxy.
By duneboat at 9:55 PM ON 10/16/09
Hey, is that ARRAKIS in the lower right portion of these majestic pictures! And if Paul Atreides is not out there, I am certain someone else is!!
By silverflare05 at 10:12 PM ON 10/16/09
lol @ nilus's comment...couldn't have said it better myself
By Kermonk at 10:33 PM ON 10/16/09
I bet its one of those photos where NASA adds a lot of fake colors, because the general populace would think the real pictures look totally dull and not interesting.
Besides, I could do better in paint shop *g*
By athelred at 9:25 AM ON 10/17/09
Yes it’s beautiful, but it is coming right at us, and is going to destroy our galaxy! What are we going to do about that? :)
By SethSJ at 10:25 AM ON 10/17/09
And humanity wants to stay earthbound, why? Are we really bored with the idea of exploration, and lazy with the idea of colonization? Then again, we are still in the middle of a recession. It all comes down to the almighty dollar.
By dnr at 4:02 PM ON 10/17/09
Stunning!!
By JT at 4:43 PM ON 10/17/09
Just Me; Nicely quoted [Contact].
...but very true!
By Vanny at 5:22 AM ON 10/19/09
@Kermonk - The picture is taken in Ultra Violet...! It says so above.
By BlueMein at 8:23 PM ON 10/19/09
that is what i see when i look at my window. Those pesky gray aliens are prolly from around those parts:)
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BlueMein:
that is what i see when i look at my window. Those pesky gray aliens are prolly from around those parts:)...More »