Tag Archives: M63

The Curly Spiral Galaxy (M63)

Curly Spiral Galaxy M63
Explanation: Messier 63, a bright spiral galaxy in the northern sky, is located about 30 million light-years away in the constellation Canes Venatici. Also cataloged as NGC 5055, this majestic island universe spans nearly 100,000 light-years, making it about the size of our own Milky Way. Its bright core and majestic spiral arms earned the galaxy its popular name, the Sunflower Galaxy. This exceptionally deep exposure reveals faint loops and curling star streams extending far into the galaxy’s halo. The star streams extend nearly 180,000 light-years from the galactic center and are likely remnants of tidally disrupted satellites of M63. Other satellite galaxies of M63, including dwarf galaxies, which could contribute to M63’s star streams in the next few billion years, can be spotted in the remarkable wide-field image.