NASA. DEEP SPACE. Hubble Space Telescope. False-color compos - Lot 244

NASA. DEEP SPACE. Hubble Space Telescope. False-color composite image of the "Cartwheel" galaxy. About 100 million years ago, a smaller galaxy passed through the center of the "Cartwheel" galaxy, creating ripples of brief star formation. In this image, the first ripple appears as a bright blue outer ring in ultraviolet light. The blue outer ring is so intense that it indicates the Cartwheel Galaxy is one of the most UV-luminous galaxies in the nearby universe. The blue color reveals to astronomers that star clusters 5 to 20 times more massive than our Sun are forming in this region. The pink clusters along the outer blue ring are regions where X-rays and ultraviolet radiation overlap in the image. The yellow-orange inner ring and the nucleus at the center of the galaxy result from the combination of visible and infrared light, which is strongest toward the center. Vintage chromogenic print. Numbered in the margin. 25.5 x 20.4 cm with margins.