The Hubble Space Telescope shows an image of the spiral galaxy NGC 1637, located 38 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Eridanus.
The European Space Agency writes about it.
Astronomers study this galaxy to observe the life cycle of stars that form in cold dusty gas clouds and collapse under the influence of their own gravity. As young stars grow, they heat their nurseries — clouds of gas — with light, wind, and powerful energies. All this together plays a significant role in controlling the rate of formation of future generations of stars.
ESA / Hubble / NASA
The spiral arms of NGC 1637 are dotted with pink dust clouds, many of which are accompanied by bright blue stars. The pink color is the result of hydrogen atoms being perturbed by ultraviolet light from young massive stars. This is especially visible in contrast to the warm yellow glow of the center of the galaxy, where a dense population of old red stars is located.
In 1999, a supernova named SN 1999EM erupted in this galaxy, making it the brightest supernova astronomers had seen that year. When a massive star goes supernova, the explosion briefly blacks out its entire home galaxy. The supernova state marks the end of a starʼs life. However, it can start the formation of new stars, because the nearest clouds of gas contract and start a new life cycle of the star.
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