Stellar Shot of the Week
SVX130T - Antennae Galaxies
Neill Martin caught this brilliant shot of interacting galaxies NGC 4038 and NGC 4039 with his SVX130T. Also known as the Antennae, these two galaxies are undergoing galactic collision approximately 63 million light-years away from Earth. Currently in their starburst phase, the collision of gas and dust clouds with entangled magnetic fields results in rapid star formation. The nuclei of these two galaxies are joining to eventually become one giant galaxy.
According to Neill: “This is an infrequently imaged target, partly because it is only visible for a few months a year and the fact that it does not rise very high in most of the North American sky. The area where the galaxies have "collided” looks very unusual. I believe that my SVX130T has done a good job at capturing the detail in this area.”
“This is an image of the interacting galaxies NGC 4038 and NGC 4039, which are also known as the Antennae Galaxies. They are a pair of colliding galaxies that began interacting hundreds of millions of years ago. The “Antennae” are the tails of the galaxies that were formed when the galaxies started their interaction. This pair of galaxies is located approximately 63 million light-years from earth.”
Other Designations: NGC 4038, NGC 4039, Antennae Galaxies.
Details:
Telescope: Stellarvue SVX130T
Mount: Skywatcher EQ6-Pro
Camera: ZWO ASI 2600MC Pro
Guidescope: Stellarvue 50mm Photographic Guide Scope
Guide Camera: ZWO ASI220MM
Filters: None
Acquisition: 19h30’ total integration time
Post-Processing: Pixinsight. Image has been cropped.
Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Neil Martin
Docent, Robert Ferguson Observatory
References:
Wikipedia contributors. (2025, June 5). Antennae galaxies. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antennae_Galaxies
Antennae Galaxies - NASA. (n.d.). NASA. https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/antennae-galaxies/
Admin. (2023, May 30). Antennae galaxies: NGC 4038 and NGC 4039 – Constellation Guide. https://www.constellation-guide.com/antennae-galaxies/
