The Cigar Galaxy in the same frame as Bode's Galaxy.
What It Is
M82, the Cigar Galaxy, is an edge-on starburst galaxy in Ursa Major. Its central region is forming stars at an intense rate, and dusty outflows give it a turbulent, smoky appearance in detailed telescope images.
History
Bode discovered M82 near M81 in 1774, and the pair remains a favorite binocular and telescope target. Modern space telescopes show that M82's unusual activity is tied to vigorous star formation in its core.
Science Notes
- M82 is about 12 million light-years away in Ursa Major.
- NASA describes it as remarkable for intense star formation activity.
- The galaxy is seen nearly edge-on, producing the elongated shape behind the Cigar Galaxy nickname.
- Hubble observations reveal bright young stars partly obscured by clumps and streaks of dust and gas.
- distance
- 12 million light-years
- apparentMagnitude
- 8.4
- constellation
- Ursa Major
- objectType
- Starburst galaxy
- companion
- M81 / Bode's Galaxy
- bestObserved
- April from mid-northern latitudes
