Astronomy:AM 0644-741

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Short description: Ring galaxy in the constellation of Volans
AM 0644-741
AM 0644-741.jpg
AM 0644-741, as taken by the HST. The galaxy that pierced through the ring galaxy is out of the image
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
ConstellationVolans
Right ascension 6h 43m 6.1s[1]
Declination−74° 13′ 35″[1]
Redshift6604 ± 26 km/s[1]
Distance300 Mly
Apparent magnitude (V)13.96[1]
Characteristics
Type(S0-) + Ring[1]
Apparent size (V)1.7[1]
Other designations
Southern Ellipse,[1] PGC 19481, AM 0644-741, ESO 34-11, VV 785, IRAS 06443-7411, SGC 064425-7411.1

AM 0644-741, also known as the Lindsay-Shapley Ring, is an unbarred lenticular galaxy, and a ring galaxy, which is 300 million light-years away in the southern constellation Volans.

Properties

Formation

The yellowish nucleus was once the center of a normal spiral galaxy, and the ring which currently surrounds the center is 150,000 light years in diameter.[2] The ring is theorized to have formed by a collision with another galaxy, which triggered a gravitational disruption that caused dust in the galaxy to condense and form stars, which forced it to then expand away from the galaxy and create a ring.

Physical characteristics

The ring's intense blue hue is the result of widespread formation of massive, young, blue stars. The pink regions along the ring are another sign of rampant star formation. They are rarefied clouds of glowing hydrogen gas, fluorescing as a result of the young blue stars' intense ultraviolet light. [3]

Future of the ring

Galactic simulation models suggest that the ring of AM 0644-741 will continue to expand for about another 300 million years, after which it will begin to disintegrate.[4]

References