NASA's Hubble Space Telescope snaps BIZARRE jellyfish Galaxy

Hubble Space Telescope has captured a strange ‘jellyfish galaxy' which is 600 million light-years away from Earth.

By: HT TECH
| Updated on: Apr 17 2023, 20:47 IST
Best NASA Astronomy Pictures of the Week: Polaris, Running Chicken Nebula and more
Jellyfish Galaxy
1/5 Running Chicken Nebula (April 10) - It is a snapshot of IC 2944, also known as the Running Chicken Nebula. According to NASA, it is located about 6,000 light years away towards the constellation of the Centaur and spans almost 100 light-years across. The nebula's strange nickname, Running Chicken, comes from the chicken-like shape of its brightest region, which resembles a running bird. (NASA/Daniel Stern)
Jellyfish Galaxy
2/5 Polaris, the North Star (April 11) - It is a fascinating image of Polaris and the dust that surrounds it. Although there are 200 billion trillion stars in the sky, Polaris is particularly special because it can help orient yourself as it is located in the direction of the true north. It is also known as the North Star or Pole Star and is present in the constellation of Ursa Minor. (NASA/Javier Zayaz)
Jellyfish Galaxy
3/5 Star cloud in the Andromeda Galaxy (April 12) - This captured image shows the star cloud NGC 206 in the Andromeda Galaxy. It is the brightest star cloud in the galaxy as seen from Earth. Also known as Messier 31, it is a spiral galaxy located approximately 2.5 million light-years away from Earth in the constellation Andromeda. According to NASA, the Andromeda Galaxy is twice the size of our own Milky Way galaxy, spanning across nearly 260,000 light-years and containing over 1 trillion stars. (NASA/Howard Trottier)
Jellyfish Galaxy
4/5 Globular star cluster NGC 2419 (April 13) - It is the globular star cluster NGC 2419. It is a multi-generational star cluster located about 300,000 light-years away towards the constellation of Lynx. According to NASA, the stars populating globular clusters are very similar because they formed at roughly the same time and because of this, they tend to display similar properties. (NASA/ESA/Hubble)
Jellyfish Galaxy
5/5 Fascinating Hamburger Galaxy (April 14) - It is a fascinating snapshot of NGC 3628, also known as the Hamburger Galaxy. It is a spiral galaxy located about 35 million light-years away towards the constellation of Leo and spans about 100,000 light-years. According to NASA, NGC 3628 shares its neighborhood in the local Universe with two other large spirals M65 and M66 in a grouping otherwise known as the Leo Triplet. (NASA/Mike Selby/Mark Hanson)
Jellyfish Galaxy
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This jellyfish galaxy is positioned nearly 600 million light-years from Earth in the Sextans constellation. (ESA/Hubble & NASA)

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope was launched and deployed by the space shuttle Discovery back in 1990. Surprisingly, NASA says that Hubble Telescope was designed to last roughly 15 years but it is still active and unravelling mysteries of space, galaxies, black holes, nebulae, and more. Now, the Hubble Telescope has captured the bizarre Galaxy JO204, which looks like a 'jellyfish'.

This is actually called as a ‘jellyfish galaxy' which gets its name due to the bright tendrils of gas that appear in this image. Hubble observed Galaxy JO204 as part of a survey performed with the intention of better understanding star formation under extreme conditions.

About the 'jellyfish' galaxy

Located in the Sextans constellation, the jellyfish galaxy is positioned nearly 600 million light-years from Earth. The ethereal tendrils of gas present beneath JO204 may look like the tentacles of jellyfish, but they are actually the result of the astronomical phenomenon called ram pressure stripping. Ram pressure is a specific type of pressure that affects a body when it moves in relation to a fluid, NASA explained.

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NASA further said, "An intuitive example is the sensation of pressure you experience when you are standing in an intense gust of wind – the wind is a moving fluid, and your body feels pressure from it." Expanding on this comparison, it can be said that although your body will stay intact and cohesive, objects that are more loosely connected - such as clothing and hair - will flutter in the breeze. This is the same case with the jellyfish galaxies.

The reason for the ram pressure stripping phenomenon is the motion of galaxies through the intergalactic medium that fills the gaps between galaxies within a galaxy cluster. Due to this movement, galaxies are subjected to high pressure which results in the stripping away of their loosely-bound gas. This gas primarily comprises the colder and denser gas present in the galaxy. The ram pressure compresses and agitates this gas, causing it to contract and form fresh stars that can be observed as the striking tendrils of a jellyfish.

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First Published Date: 17 Apr, 20:47 IST
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