MSGID: 1:153/757.0 0dbbd8bf
TZUTC: -0800
CHRS: LATIN-1 2
                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    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 March 6

                         Starburst Galaxy Messier 94
                      Image Credit: ESA/Hubble and NASA

   Explanation: Beautiful island universe Messier 94 lies a mere 15
   million light-years distant in the northern constellation of the
   hunting dogs, Canes Venatici. A popular target for earth-based
   astronomers, the face-on spiral galaxy is about 30,000 light-years
   across, with spiral arms sweeping through the outskirts of its broad
   disk. But this Hubble Space Telescope field of view spans about 7,000
   light-years or so across M94's central region. The sharp close-up
   examines the galaxy's compact, bright nucleus and prominent inner dust
   lanes, surrounded by a remarkable bluish ring of young, massive stars.
   The massive stars in the ring appear to be less than about 10 million
   years old, indicating the galaxy experienced a corresponding
   well-defined era of rapid star formation. As a result, while the small,
   bright nucleus is typical of the Seyfert class of active galaxies, M94
   is also known as a starburst galaxy. Because M94 is relatively nearby,
   astronomers can explore in detail reasons for the galaxy's burst of
   star formation.

                       Today's Coverage: Moon Landing
                     Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
                NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
 * Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)
SEEN-BY: 4/0 19/10 88/0 90/0 93/1 105/81 106/201 128/187 129/305 134/100
SEEN-BY: 153/135 143 148 151 153 757 6809 7083 7715 154/110 218/700
SEEN-BY: 218/840 221/1 6 360 226/30 227/114 229/110 114 206 307 317
SEEN-BY: 229/400 426 428 470 664 700 705 266/512 291/111 301/1 320/219
SEEN-BY: 322/757 335/364 341/66 200 342/200 396/45 460/58 633/280
SEEN-BY: 712/848 880/1 900/0 102 106 902/0 19 26 905/0 5019/40 5020/400
SEEN-BY: 5075/35
PATH: 153/757 221/6 341/66 902/26 229/426