APOD: 2026 March 30 – Peculiar Elliptical Galaxy Centaurus A
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Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
2026 March 30
Peculiar Elliptical Galaxy Centaurus A
Image Credit & Copyright:
SADR Observatory Team:
J-C Dalouzy,
P. Bazart, M. Dherbécourt, C. Humbert, G. Leroy,
J-P Quéau, H. Talbot, & E. Valin
Explanation:
What’s happened to the center of this galaxy?
Dramatic dust lanes run across the center of unusual elliptical galaxy
Centaurus A.
These dust lanes are so thick they almost completely obscure the
galaxy’s center in
visible light.
This is particularly unusual as
Cen A‘s
older stars and oval shape are characteristic of a giant
elliptical galaxy, a galaxy type typically low in dark dust.
Pictured in
this deep image
is a complex network of foreground gas and dust, as well as
shells of dim stars and a
jet projecting to the upper right.
Also known as NGC 5128,
Cen A is surely the result of a
galactic collision where many young dust-creating stars were formed.
However, details of the creation of Cen A’s unusually
active center and iconic central dust lanes are still
being researched.
Cen A lies only 13 million
light years away, making it the
closest active galaxy.
Jigsaw Galaxy:
Astronomy Puzzle of the Day
Tomorrow’s picture: titanian trenches
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Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn
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