Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have captured a striking new photo of UGC 10143, a giant elliptical galaxy located in the center of the galaxy cluster Abell 2147.
This Hubble image shows the elliptical galaxy UGC 10143 in the center of the galaxy cluster Abell 2147. Image credit: NASA / ESA / W. Harris, McMaster University / G. Kober, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center / Catholic University of America.
UGC 10143 lies approximately 486 million light-years away in the constellation of Serpens.
Also known as LEDA 56784 and Arp 324, this galaxy is the biggest and brightest member of the galaxy cluster Abell 2147, which itself may be part of the much larger Hercules Supercluster of galaxies.
“UGC 10143’s bright center, dim extended halo, and lack of spiral arms and star-forming dust lanes distinguish it as an elliptical galaxy,” Hubble astronomers said.
“Ellipticals are often near the center of galaxy clusters, suggesting they may form when galaxies merge.”
This new image of UGC 10143 is part of a Hubble survey of globular clusters associated with the brightest members in galaxy clusters.
“Globular star clusters help us trace the origin and evolution of their galactic neighbors,” the researchers explained.
“The Hubble survey looked at the distribution, brightness, and metal content of more than 35,000 globular clusters.”
The color image of UGC 10143 was made from separate exposures taken in the visible and infrared regions of the spectrum with Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) and Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) as well as from data from the Pan-STARRS Collaboration.
Several filters were used to sample various wavelengths.
The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter.
“The color blue represents visible blue light, and reddish-orange represents near infrared light,” the scientists said.
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