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whirlpool galaxy

Two Fine Spiral Galaxies Near the Dipper’s Handle

April 28, 2023 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Deep Sky

Messier 51, the Whirlpool Galaxy, and its companion NGC 5195. Credit: Terry Hancock at Downunderobservatory.com
Messier 51, the Whirlpool Galaxy, and its companion NGC 5195. Credit: Terry Hancock at Downunderobservatory.com

The handle of the Dipper offers a convenient guide two stately face-on spiral galaxies that are visible, at least to some degree, in a small telescope. In dark skies, these two nearby galaxies display clear hints of a striking and ubiquitous pinwheel shape that reveals itself in the clouds of a hurricane or the seed arrangement in a sunflower, a reminder that many of nature’s patterns appear at a wide range of scales [Read more…] about Two Fine Spiral Galaxies Near the Dipper’s Handle

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Filed Under: Deep Sky galaxies, m101, m51, whirlpool galaxy

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