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                        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.

                               2026 January 21

                   Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 1365 from Webb
   Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Janice Lee (NOIRLab) - Processing: Alyssa
                                Pagan (STScI)

   Explanation: A mere 56 million light-years distant toward the southern
   constellation Fornax, NGC 1365 is an enormous barred spiral galaxy
   about 200,000 light-years in diameter. That's twice the size of our own
   barred spiral Milky Way. This sharp image from the James Webb Space
   Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) reveals stunning details of
   this magnificent spiral in infrared light. Webb's field of view
   stretches about 60,000 light-years across NGC 1365, exploring the
   galaxy's core and bright newborn star clusters. The intricate network
   of dusty filaments and bubbles is created by young stars along spiral
   arms winding from the galaxy's central bar. Astronomers suspect the
   gravitational field of NGC 1365's bar plays a crucial role in the
   galaxy's evolution, funneling gas and dust into a star-forming
   maelstrom and ultimately feeding material into the active galaxy's
   central, supermassive black hole.

           Tomorrow's picture: the light, the dark, and the dusty
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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