Astronomy Picture of the Day [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2025 December 4 [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available. Galaxies in the Furnace Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Simone Curzi and the [5]ShaRA Team Explanation: An example of violence on a cosmic scale, enormous elliptical galaxy NGC 1316 lies about 75 million light-years away [6]toward Fornax, the southern constellation of the Furnace. [7]Investigating the startling sight, astronomers suspect the giant galaxy of colliding with smaller neighbor NGC 1317 seen just right of the large galaxy's center, producing far flung [8]star streams in loops and shells. Light from their close encounter would [9]have reached Earth some 100 million years ago. [10]In the sharp telescopic image, the central regions of NGC 1316 and NGC 1317 appear separated by over 100,000 light-years. [11]Complex dust lanes visible within also indicate that NGC 1316 is itself the result of a merger of galaxies in the distant past. Found on the outskirts of the [12]Fornax galaxy cluster, NGC 1316 is known as Fornax A. One of the visually brightest of the Fornax cluster galaxies it is one of the strongest and largest celestial radio sources with radio emission [13]extending well beyond this one degree wide field-of-view. Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space __________________________________________________________________ [14]< | [15]Archive | [16]Submissions | [17]Index | [18]Search | [19]Calendar | [20]RSS | [21]Education | [22]About APOD | [23]Discuss | [24]> __________________________________________________________________ Authors & editors: [25]Robert Nemiroff ([26]MTU) & [27]Jerry Bonnell ([28]UMCP) NASA Official: Amber Straughn [29]Specific rights apply. [30]NASA Web Privacy, [31]Accessibility, [32]Notices; A service of: [33]ASD at [34]NASA / [35]GSFC, [36]NASA Science Activation & [37]Michigan Tech. U. References 1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2512/FornaxA_final_apod.jpg 3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 4. https://app.astrobin.com/u/MRWSKYLOVER?i=0ym89c#gallery 5. https://astrotrex.wordpress.com/2024/12/16/shara11-fornax-a-and-a-potential-discovery/ 6. https://earthsky.org/constellations/fornax-the-furnace-galaxy-hubble-ultra-deep-field/ 7. https://science.nasa.gov/asset/hubble/hubble-spies-cosmic-dust-bunnies/ 8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap080619.html 9. http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/cosmic_lookback.html 10. https://app.astrobin.com/u/MRWSKYLOVER?i=0ym89c#gallery 11. https://science.nasa.gov/asset/hubble/the-dusty-galaxy-ngc-1316/ 12. http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/galgrps/for.html 13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap050628.html 14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251203.html 15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html 17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html 18. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search 19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 20. https://apod.com/feed.rss 21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html 22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html 23. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=251204 24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251205.html 25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html 26. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/ 27. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html 28. http://www.astro.umd.edu/ 29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 30. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html 31. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/ 32. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/ 33. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 34. https://www.nasa.gov/ 35. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/ 36. https://science.nasa.gov/learners 37. http://www.mtu.edu/