There’s a cosmic “noot,” the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has just declared, and it’s both beautiful and adorable. Taking to its official Instagram page, NASA has releasedtwo imagesdisplaying galaxies that are shaped like a penguin and an egg.
The Andromeda galaxy is a notable barred spiral galaxy and is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way (our galaxy).
A penguin and egg-shaped pairing of galaxies, known collectively as Arp 142, was found 23 million light-years away
Image credits:NASA
Due to its mix of features – new stars, strands of gas, and others – its distortion is readily visible, NASA added. The “penguin” galaxy appears to be standing over its galactic neighbor.
NASA has described twisted filaments of blue and red outlining the penguin shape in the speckled, white glow of the galaxy’s body. Wisps of rusty lines cascade from the penguin’s “beak” to its “torso.“
The result makes for two galaxies standing out against a black background dotted with small, faint stars and two brighter stars at the top of the image
The result makes for two galaxies standing out against a black background dotted with small, faint stars and two brighter stars at the top of the image. The “egg” galaxy is just below the “penguin,” appearing as a glowing, turquoise oblong.
Image credits:nasahubble
NASA has suggested that over time, gravity will bring the two galaxies closer together until they merge into one. This type of merging likely occurred in the history of most large galaxies we see today, including the Milky Way.
Some readers joked that it didn’t answer the old question of “Which came first, the penguin or the egg?”
Lei RV
Renan Duarte
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