Galaxies

Moving further out from the nebulae in our galaxy, to other galaxies, the distances get… more astronomical. 

Here we follow the trail in no particular direction of ever-increasingly distant galaxies captured from a variety of locations and with telescopes of  various sizes.

The Milky Way

The closest galaxy to us is the one we are in. The Milky  Way.

Visible on a dark clear night from anywhere on the planet as a vast bulging band of diffuse light.

Long exposure photography  brings out fascinating detail as we look toward the center through several spiral arms, we now know that there is a hidden black hole at the very center, approximately 25,000 light years away..

The Large Magellanic Cloud

Also visible to the naked eye , 158,000 light years away and exclusive to the Southern Hemisphere are two satellite galaxies of the Milky Way. The Large (LMC) and Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC).

Concentrating here on the LMC, long exposures reveal an exotic array of twisted, knotty gas forming some of the most complex gaseous features you will see.  

As these galaxies are being gravitationally deformed by the vastly more massive Milky Way. It is expected that one day in the distant future, they will be one.

from 6 to 40 million light years Away


In order from top to bottom

NGC55in Sculptor    
6.5 million light years


NGC253  in Sculptor  
11.4 million light years


NGC4945 in Centaurus
13 million light years


M83 in Hydra  
15 million light years


m64 in Coma Berenices
24 million light years


Sombrero  in Virgo
29 million light years


NGC7331 in Pegasus
40 million light years


from 45 to 100 million light years Away

Antenna Galaxies in Corvus
45 million light years


NGC7497 in Pegasus
59 million light years


Quartet in Grus
60 million light years


NGC5101 in Hydra
89 million light years


NGC5078 in Hydra
94 million light years


 

Further than 100 million light years Away

 

NGC3312 in Hydra
194 million light years


NGC6769 6770 6771 galaxy group in Pavo
200 million light years


NGC6872 in Pavo
212 million light years


Cartwheel in Sculptor
489 million light years