Galaxy Cluster Gathers Inside a Cosmic 'Furnace' in New Video, Images
Galaxy Cluster Gathers Inside a Cosmic 'Furnace' in New Video, Images
By Christine Lunsford, Space.com Contributor | April 13, 2016 05:49pm ET
The Southern Hemisphere constellation of Fornax, which means "The Furnace," contains a mass of galaxies known as the Fornax Cluster, which takes center stage in these striking views from a telescope in Chile.
A new Fornax galaxy cluster video and image, which were unveiled today (April 13), were captured by astronomers with the European Southern Observatory using the Very Large Telescope. Researchers used the VLT's Survey Telescope at Paranal Observatory in Chile's Atacama Desert. The observations reveal that the Fornax cluster is home to a host of galaxies of various types and sizes.
Galaxy clusters demonstrate gravity's power over long distances, with the gravitational influence of dark matter and the visible galaxies themselves leading to the cosmic groupings. These cosmic clusters typically contain from 100 to 1,000 galaxies at a width of 5 to 30 million light-years across. (One light-year is the distance light travels in a year, about 6 trillion miles or 10 trillion kilometers). (When Galaxies Collide: Amazing Photos of Galactic Crashes)
The Fornax Cluster, at roughly 65 million light-years from Earth, includes about 60 large galaxies and about as many dwarf galaxies. The centerpiece of this cluster is NGC 1399, which is known as a cD galaxy — a type often considered as a "galactic cannibal," according to ESO officials.
More:
http://www.space.com/32564-galaxy-cluster-cosmic-furnace-fornax-video-image.html#sthash.ykegP6jR.dpuf
Science:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/122846545
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VLT's Survey Telescope at Paranal Observatory in Chile's Atacama Desert. [/center]
Please take a glimpse of Google's images of this amazing installation in Chile:
https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1091&bih=476&q=VLT%27s+Survey+Telescope+at+Paranal+Observatory+in+Chile%27s+Atacama+Desert.&oq=VLT%27s+Survey+Telescope+at+Paranal+Observatory+in+Chile%27s+Atacama+Desert.&gs_l=img.12...994.994.0.3267.1.1.0.0.0.0.180.180.0j1.1.0....0...1ac.1.64.img..0.0.0.y2lL8GqMomA